Another Wyoming Cowboy in Africa!

Good afternoon everyone!
   We had a little bit of trouble with our internet so my email will not be super long but I will do what I can to make it a good one! First off, I would like to say thank you so much to all the people that wrote me this week...I really appreciated it! And second, I would like to say congrats to Brayden Flack; you're coming to Africa buddy! It's no Francophone mission but it's still Africa so you are in the brotherhood!

Elder Legerski and Elder Mbikayi taught Presley the Gospel.  Jhostavie is his friend and baptized him.

   Well, this week was just a really really awesome week! I got to go on splits with Elder Beutler, who is our zone leader. We are the same age but he came out right after high school and he goes home next Wednesday. He is such a good missionary and I loved working with him so much! Its crazy to see how even though we are the same age, he is so far ahead of me in missionary work because he has been doing it for about 16 months more than I have! But it was so nice to be able to talk with him and to work with him! While we were with him, we had a really cool experience at an amis house. We were talking with Alex, who is a 17 year old teenager. And last week, I shared with her my dad's experience (by the way thanks Dad!) about when we pray, sometimes we just have to stop and listen so that we can hear God's answer. As we followed through to see if she had read the Book of Mormon and if she had prayed, we asked her if she had gotten a response. And usually this is a no most of the times. But she said yes and she went on to explain how she got her answer and she said that she would be baptized on the 27^th of June! It was so awesome and I know that it was all God and I know that He does answer out prayers if we are willing to listen with our spiritiual ears!

   Second we had 2 people have interviews this week; only one passed, the other one didn’t. This was really a bummer, but after talking with the ami, we saw that it was just a mistake.  Other than that, the ami was really ready so they will be baptized on a later date, so that’s not too bad of a problem. But we did have an ami who did pass and Elder Beutler said that he was really ready for baptism and that he had a really strong testimony. I really liked when he said that when he was bearing his testimony, it strengthened mine. This is so true and that’s why we have things like fast and testimony meeting, because every time that we share or listen to a testimony ours is strengthened.

   One of the most exciting thing for this week is the fact that we had a whole entire family come to church on Sunday!!!!!! It was the most amazing thing to see! And that’s the first time that that has ever happened on my mission!!!! We are really working towards baptism with them and I hope they will be baptized before the end of the month!! Families are so amazing. I miss my family so much, but this work is worth it because it blesses other families.

 

Elder Bailey, Sylvie, Paco, Elder Legerski and Elder Mbikayi enjoy Sylvie's
meal of "paella"
 

Paella!! I ate it....shrimp and all.  And I loved it:)

    Well, that’s the end of my letter for this week. I love you all so much! Ah...I forgot but we are teaching a white French lady! She cooked a Spanish dish (not Mexican, Spanish...there is a big difference!) but I ate shrimp and loved it! Mom and grandma you would be proud. Also, I love avocats now. But someone go eat some chinese food with curry for me!

Love
Elder Legerski



A Tale of Two Baptisms: Dechris and Uriel

   Hello everyone how are you!? Well, the sun is still shining bright and I'm surrounded by beautiful black faces everywhere so I guess I'm still here in Africa! I'm glad you're getting a lot of rain because we aren’t! The rainy season came to an end about 9 weeks ago. And it's probably a good thing too because we can't visit a lot of our amis when it rains because it floods their neighborhood! This week was a really awesome one! I got to go on splits two times with Elder Kabeya and with Elder Larson! (as you can tell I was really thrilled to be able to work with Elder Larson once more!). And I also hit my 8 month mark this past week! It's really been something crazy and it seems like I have too much time left, but with how fast the last 8 months have gone, it's gonna go by really, really fast!

   This week has really been a good one for me, I have learned a lot and it's helped me a lot to be able to grow. First was a district lesson that Elder Beutler, our zone leader, gave a lesson on the Book Of Mormon. He talked about how he came to know that it is true and the things that the Book of Mormon gives to us. This book is soooo important for us! That’s why each time we teach people, we use the Book of Mormon at every single opportunity that we can. That’s why we assign our amis to read this book, because between this book and the first vision of Joseph Smith, we can know the truth of all things. I myself have read this book and I have prayed to know if it was true. And you know I didn’t have anything miraculous happen to me! But as I thought about it and as I read it, something inside my heart told me that it was true. And as I read it, I realized that there is no way in the world that a man could have written this book. If any of you want to improve your life and become happier, I challenge you to read this book and to ask God if it is true! And if so, follow the things that this book says. I promise you that you will see a difference in your life!

   Next are two friends: Dechris and Uriel; they have both decided to be baptized and they will both be baptized on the 6^th together. They are just really awesome and they have both told us how when they have applied the things that we have taught them, that they really see a difference in their lives and they see how they are becoming a better person. We were talking with Dechris about how we all need to be missionaries in this church! He has said from day one that he really wants to be like us and to share the gospel! He is a little old but I really hope he can serve a mission! But we asked him to invite his friends to his baptism and he said he would invite all of them so that's really awesome!

   Sometimes on the mission its hard to see the good in some things. Its so easy to just focus on the things that you don’t like, when it would be better if you looked at all the good things you had. I found that I have been doing this. So I have started  trying to see the good in everything and its really made me happier. As we go through this life we only have a limited time. I know that I wanna go through it happy and not like the Grinch.

   Well, that’s all for this week folks! I'll be coming back at you next week! Thanks to all who emailed me I really appreciated it! Someone go eat some white Wonder bread for me!!

Love,
Elder Legerski

Ps. I'm so good at making yogurt now!!

New American Missionaries for the Congo

   Hello family...how are you all doing!? Well, as for us we are all doing super well in the Congo and everything is going just great here! And to start off with some exciting news, we will be receiving 8 new missionaries in November!! This is really exciting for us because Elder Larson and I were the last Americans to come into the mission so we have been the babies in the mission for a long, long time! So I can't wait to see them and have them not be able to speak French and just seem like the cool older missionary who has been out for a long time!!

   But this week was a really awesome one. For one we had a baptism for our team! His name is Presley and he is just an awesome kid! Already he wants to go on a mission so hopefully by the time that I am home, he will be on a mission!! The service was really great and he seemed really happy. He was a little nervous to receive the Holy Ghost, but all went well. The second experience that was super awesome was meeting with the older brother of Presley, whose name is DeChris. He is just super awesome. We have been teaching him for awhile and I really like him a lot!! Every time that we go and see him, he talks about how much he loves the chastity brochure and how much it has touched him and made him a better person. This week he told us 2 experiences that touched him this week. One was the General Conference that he watched. He said that as he watched the apostles and the prophet speak that he was really touched and that he had been having some doubts. But as he watched, all of the doubts that he had were erased and that he knew the church was true. Another happened this last Sunday, when he came and he talked about how he was really touched and how he is usually not like this. How since he has started meeting with us, he has felt a desire to change his ways and come unto Christ. It was a really awesome experience to talk with him and he should be getting baptized the 6^th of June!! This just shows why all missionaries ask their investigators to come to church or read or do things like that. We can only do so much and usually a response that the church is true does not come during a lesson. It comes in praying, reading and assisting at church. You have to have the will to receive it!!

   The other opportunity that we had this week was to have a zone conference with our mission president! I just love when we can talk with him! We talked a lot about the things that we need to change and what we need to do. The missionaries who are going home (Elder Mandefu, Beutler, and the Bailey’s) all bore their testimonies and it was awesome! It's awesome to see how far they have come and I'm so glad that I have a lot more time on my mission so that I can grow and become what the Lord wants me to become!! Speaking of the Baileys, we have need of senior missionaries so all you older people who can, please prepare and tell your friends to prepare because senior couples are a life saver for us!!

Pointe Noire Zone Conference

Elder Kabongo looks very tall next to
Elders Larson and Legerski...

But when they stand up Elder Kabonho's true size is shown.
 He a has great big heart though!

Elder Kabeya, Elder Mandefu Elder Mbikayi and Elder Legerski.

   Mais en mon etude de francais, j'ai commence d'ecrire un peu donc je vais partager mon temoinage en francais sur le livre de mormon. (But in my study of French, I have begun to write a little, so I will share my testimony in French about the Book of Mormon)  Je sais que ce livre est vrai et je sais que nous devons le lire chaque jour. (I know that this book is true and I know that we should read it each day)  Et si nous faisons ceci Le Seigneur nous a donner une promesse, que nous saurons toute chose que nous devons faire. (And if we will do this, Heavenly Father gives us a promise, that we will know everything that we should do)  Je sais que ce livre va nous aider dapprocher a Dieu afin que nous puissions avoir la vie eternelle. (I know that this book will help us draw nearer to God so that we can have eternal life)  Et en lisant ce livre nous allons recevoir plusieurs des benidictions. (And in reading this book, we will receive many blessings)

   It's not great but the writing will come ! Thanks to all of the people who wrote me...I really appreciate it a lot!! And for news, I learned how to make yougurt and it's really good! So my future wife better watch out when I come back home! I love you all so much! Go eat some sweet and sour pork for me!!

Love,
Elder Legerski

Africa is Full of Surprises!

Hello everyone!
   Coming at you from halfway around the world but that’s nothing new now! I just have to say Africa always has some real surprises for you no matter where you go. For one, there are hummers everywhere! And two, I saw a Ford Raptor today and it was so sick! Made me think just think of how the heck it got here! Also, if I was to play basketball with a bunch of Africans on an 8 foot hoop, you might as well call me Michael Jordan because I balled up on some people this morning. On the downside, my body feels like I ran a marathon...I'm a little out of shape!!
   This week has been one that has been very jam packed and busy! We had General Conference again on Saturday and Sunday and then we were able to talk with our families on Sunday night! It was really awesome and I really enjoyed it! It just makes me miss my family even more, but over all it's not that bad because I know I am where I need to be right now! I'm going to try and send some photos home but the connection is not very good so I just hope they go through and I hope you all like them!

Elder Mwehu and Elder Legerski

Elder Larson and Elder Legerski: Models in Africa:)

Leaving for Limbe: Elders Legerski, Kabasele, West

A Pensive (and cheesy:) Elder Legerski on the beach at Limbe

   For my entries this week, I'm going to write about two friends who we are teaching together: Uriel and DeChris.  DeChris is the older brother of Presley, who will be baptized this coming Saturday; he has met with the missionaries before but he stopped and because of his little brother he has started to take the lessons again! This week we had a super awesome lesson with them and it was over The Plan of Salvation. The Plan of Salvation is one of my favorite things so learn about as well as teach with investigators. The focus of the lesson was Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. We talked about how they ate the fruit and that they were cast out, as well as how this brought both joy and sadness into this world. It was just awesome being able to teach that and the Spirit was really strong and they both understood it so well. It was a super awesome lesson and they both understood that if they had not fallen, then we would not be here now. I also loved when Elder Holland talked in General Conference and connected this fall (which is such a blessing for us) with the Atonement. Because Christ came and died for us and took his sins upon Him, He overcame this fall and He gave us a chance to become clean and not fallen and return to our Father in Heaven. I am so thankful for Him and the things that He did for me. But when He died for us, He gave us a way to use His Atonement and it only works if you repent and follow His gospel. It's crazy that as you serve, you begin to see how everything in the Gospel connects and how each thing has its own role, but it leads into another principle.
   Well that’s about all for this week folks! For Sister Unrast, go look in third Nephi chapter 11:5. I thank everyone that wrote me this week... I really appreciate it! For all my friends up at Powell congrats on graduating! I wish I could be there to see you all! For your challenge  this week, go eat some buffalo wings for me! For my address here it is:

Elder Zachary Legerski

Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

P.O. Box 1177

Pointe Noire

Republic of the Congo

But packages don’t get here at all so just send letters please! If you want to send me a package send it to the Douala address and when someone comes here they will put it in their luggage for me! But that’s all for this week...until the next I love you all!!!

Elder Legerski

 

Fugitive in the Congo:)

Hello everyone!
   This is Elder Legerski coming at you from a tiny little cyber on the side of the road. Things are a lot different here in Pointe Noire! But I'm doing well and I am absolutely loving it here! I would just like to thank everyone who wrote me this week...I am so thankful. Know that I love you all and I pray for you guys all the time!

   So I'll go ahead and  tell you a little bit about last Monday and how that went! We went to Limbe and it was so much fun! We went to the beach and all of us Elders were able to walk in the ocean a little bit and as well as walk on the beach which was amazing! After all that fun we went to the animal park where we got to see a ton a monkeys and chips and even gorillas!!! It was so much fun and now I can actually say that I have seen some African animals while I came here!!!! Also we rode up in the back of the truck so every time that we came to a place where the cops stop you (which is a lot) we had to close the back so we were in a sauna!! But it was really coo... I really felt like a fugitive and all in all in was really awesome!!

The beach in Limbe

Elders Kabasele, Mandefu, Sperry, West, Legerski, Mwehu, Larson, & VanAusdal
at the Limbe Wildlife Center

 Elders Kabasele, Legerski, West, Larson, & Mwehu

 
   Then Wednesday came and I was being transferred, and let me tell you when you have to pack your bags up all over again it really stinks!! But I got on my flight over and we didn’t have any problems so it was all really awesome!! It's so nice going through the airport when you are actually able to speak French and know where to go!! Finally, the Bailey's picked us up and we got to go eat dinner at the Bailey's which was awesome!!! They are an awesome senior couple! And our apartment is right upstairs from them! So we get little perks now and then like brownies!!

   But a little bit about Pointe Noire, it's really awesome here! But compared to Doulala and Cameroon, it is a little  bit poorer. In our sector, we have almost no paved roads it is just sand and sand and sand! My calves are gonna be pretty cut after I get done here. The local language is Key Congo and pretty much everyone speaks it so hopefully I stay here long enough so that I will be able to pick up some. Also, I have the opportunity to go to the only church built building in my entire mission and it is awesome!! It's so nice and sometimes I even feel like I am back in America! And even better than that, we get to play basketball there every Monday!! As for the work here, it is just awesome. We have nearly every lesson with a member present because the young men love to work with us! So they walk around in the heat and suffer with us for one day out of the week! We have tons of amis! We had one day with 9 lessons this week and man was I worn out after that!

   My companion is Elder Mbikayi and is sounds nothing like how you spell it!  But he is just such a stud! Every lesson I come away feeling like I know just nothing but it is so nice! I've only been with him for a few days, yet I have learned so much! He is from the DRC and he has only been a member for around 4 years. But he has such a strong testimony and I just love him to death! We are in our apartment by ourselves and it is very small! I can't even describe it but I will try and send some photos home soon!

Companions for the Aéroport Branche:  Elder Legerski and Elder Mbikayi

The "Zone" of Pointe Noire as of April 30, 2015

Back row: Elder Beutler, Elder Larson, Elder Legerski, Elder Waite, Elder Etherington

Front Row: Elder Kabaya, Elder Kabongo, Elder Mandefu, Elder Mbikayi,

and Elder Andriamiasinarivo 

  This week I'll talk a little about Presley who is one of our investigators. He is just such a stud! We have met with him just a few times and he already knows all of the doctrine and he is super excited to be baptized! Unfortunately, we had to move his baptismal date back to the 16^th of May because of General Conference but I'm glad that I'll be here to see it! I can't wait to get back and meeting with him! He already has a solid group of friends and I know that he will be well set in the church!

   Also this last week, I have really tried to better my personal study and one thing I focused on was the nature of God and Jesus Christ. I have been forming a relationship with these two for quite some time and its growing more and more every day. But I went through all the scriptures in Preach My Gospel and I really turned it on to me. I tell my amis these things, but I need to know them first. I read and then I wrote who my Father in Heaven is and who my Savior and Brother is. This helped me so much and it just strengthened my testimony that this church is true!!

            

   I just love missionary work, even when it stinks sometimes! I know these things are true and I can't wait to get back out there and do the work! For a challenge this week, everyone pray for Elder Larson because he is opening up a new sector which is super tough! Thank you all and I love you so much!!

Love,

Elder Legerski

Look out Pointe-Noire...here I come!

   Hello everyone and good morning / afternoon from Douala, Cameroon!! This is your Elder Legerski coming at you. And I am sorry to report that for the last time, I am coming at you from Douala. I learned Saturday just before General Conference that I will be getting trasferred to Pointe-Noire! And that is all the way in The Republic of Congo (800 miles away)! So I am sorry for all of you who sent me things, but they will be kept here until they can make their way to Pointe-Noire. I do not know my address yet, but I will send you it as soon as I am able to! And on the bright side, mon meilleur ami Elder Larson will be accompanying me for the flight there!

Elder Legerski, President Mbenge, Wos Salomon, Flore, Elder Mwehu

   This week has been a very long and yet a very short week. The highlight of my week was that I finally had my first baptism!! We had 2 investigators, Flor and Salomon who were baptized on the 24^th! It was a very awesome service and I was so excited! Plus, on top of that it was Elder Mwehu's birthday! It was awesome seeing them baptized and I'll talk a little about Salomon. He has been meeting with us every day for the last 2 weeks. It has been awesome to see how he has grown in this time. As we went over things with him, I remembered when he was just beginning the lessons with us and how much that he has grown from that period. Then, on the Wednesday or Thursday before his baptism, we were closing the lesson when he asked us if he could share something with us. And he turned to a few verses that he had read in The Book of Mormon and he said that as he had read them, he had felt comforted when he had thought about his baptism. This was so awesome for me to see and it just strengthened my testimony of the Book of Mormon and the things that are inside. It breaks my heart that I have to leave right after his baptism, but that is the mission and I know that I am needed somewhere else by the Lord and not here.

   That is one thing that I have really come to realize; sometimes I am needed somewhere where I do not want to go but still I must go where he wants me to go. During my personal study, I was reading about how Jesus was tortured and made to carry his cross when he was crucified. He had all the power in the world to stop that and to make all the pain to go away, but he didn’t. I thought of how Jesus lived a perfect life and before I had always thought about how He had never broken the commandments.  But now I realize that he submitted himself to everything that His Father wanted him to do. He followed every prompting and obeyed with the will of the Father with exactness . That just blew my mind to think about how hard that is and how much He loved us to do that. I know that Jesus is the Christ and through Him we may have eternal life and through his atonement, we can grow and become the person that God sees us as.

   In the gospel of Jesus Christ we read that we must have Faith, Repent, be Baptized, Receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Endure to the End. And as I was looking through Preach my Gospel, I was prompted to read about Faith. I loved how it talked about if we have faith in Christ that means that we will act and that we will place our faith in him. In doing so, He will bless us and we will be able to grow our faith in Him even more. Recently, we have been having a need for more amis and I read about how we needed to have faith that our Father in Heaven will show us the people prepared for us. Then I made the connection that I needed to go out and search and place my faith in Him and that he would show me. So, I spent a really long and hot day with Elder West contacting and although nobody accepted our message at that time, I know that I did my best and that that is all that I can do at this moment. I just have to know that all things will be done in His time and His way and to be patient until that time will come.

   This email is coming at you a little late and I'm very sorry about that, but we went to Limbe today and it was amazing! I will do my best to tell you all about it next week but it was amazing and such a great experience! I took lots of photos, so I will send them next week as well! It was certainly not a trip that I will forget anytime soon.

   For my family, I am sorry that my letters have been a little short and not full of detail. Sometimes we want to fill up our letter with amazing experiences that we have, but in reality sometimes we do not have any amazing experiences. While speaking with Elder Larson today, we both expressed the feeling of almost accomplishing nothing while we have been here for 6 months together. Sometimes you're outside all day and it's hot and nobody will meet with you and you are tired and it's not easy. Sometimes it just flat out stinks. You come home and you are so tired; you eat, prepare for bed and then you wake up early to do the same thing over and over and over. Now why serve a mission if it's like this some may ask? It's because the knowledge and the testimony that you gain of the Gospel on your mission cannot be gained in any other place or at any other time. It is worth  more than all the money on the world. Right now I can't even explain how much I am thankful for my mission and how much I want every young man to serve. This is the most important thing that I have ever done in my life and I would not replace it with anything. I love this Church and I love this Gospel. I love my Savior and I am so thankful that I have the chance to serve Him.

   To all of the people who wrote me, I am so thankful for that and keep it up because I love you all and I love the things that you do for me. Someone go drink a root beer float for me. Je vous aime avec tout mon Coeur (I love you with all my heart). Until next week and Pointe-Noire!

Elder Legerski

Fruits of the Labor...so sweet:)

   Hello everyone...how are you doing!? Everything is going good here in Africa and in Cameroon. The sun is still shining and the rain isn't falling but the work is great and the Lord is on our side. This week seemed to fly by and it was a really good one.
   This week was really dedicated to getting our investigators ready for baptism. We have been working and working and finally we will be having 2 baptisms this coming Friday! It took a lot of effort but all is well. The investigators who are being baptised are Flor and Salomon. We are really happy and after 3 months of work we will be able to see the fruits of our labor.
   Also, I want to talk a little about church this past Sunday because it was really awesome. We had President Monga with us and he was able to teach us a little bit. And what he taught us on was the priesthood. He taught us how we all made a promise with our Heavenly Father the day that we were given the priesthood. He talked about how if someone near us is in need, it's not the people who just have time need to go help, we need to make time in order to go and see them. It's something that’s very important.  I love the words of Mosiah in chapter 18 verse 8, I believe. He talks about how we need to mourn with those who mourn and weep with those who weep. I love this because here I have really learned how to open up. And I have formed so many relationships with people that I love, with other missionaries, with members, and with amis. Relationships are something that will last a life time and will never fade.
   Well, that’s about all for this week...I'm sorry it's not very long but I hope it was good enough! This next week will be busy with people who we have been contacting this last week! I love all of you and I thank every one of you that wrote me! If any of you have the time, send me some letters because the Elders love having letters! Once again I would like to thank you all and say that I love you so much. Someone go up to the Elders and Sisters in the Lord and say thank you so much for your service because that means so much to a missionary!

Love,
Elder Legerski