December 14th 2015

Hey you guys!!!!

Can't believe it is already monday. Time is going too fast. I can barely find time to record in my journal. But i am trying. :) things are good on this side. People are leaving for holiday. I said my first good-byes this week. It is hard to say good bye. I am not really looking forward to the next couple of weeks. I remember just two years ago. I looked back at the 

Phoenix airport and i could see mom and dad through the window. Now it will be another group of loved ones. But hey there is hope in the plan of salvation. 

Every moment has been good this week. It felt good. We met some great people. Had some powerful lessons. Did some deep cleaning of our flat. It was good. Church was good too. Nothing too crazy cool that i won't mention later. So lets see if i can remember to mention those special moments. 

But this next week should be great. We will be in PE for a couple of days. Zone Conference is here. We will get some great training and some yummy food. Looking forward to it. Not looking forward to the drive, but we will get through it. 

Let's get started now,

Dad, i feel that alot too Dad. I feel sometimes that i am preparing people for others to baptize. It has been many a moment that i have been asked "Elder Pennington, you remember so and so. Yeah, they are so great. Yeah, they are baptized." "Oh Elder Pennington, everyone talks about you." These moments make me smile nonetheless. I am happy to be an instrument in the Lord's hands. However He wants to do it, i will follow. It is not my mission, it is His. So as long as th work gets done. I will do my part and make the most of every moment. 

I have heard of "the Plan." Helping return missionaries get back into things. From what i understand when i looked into it before. It will begin before people leave. They set goals and make plans. Then review every now and then on mission with help from president. And then at the end they can hit the ground running. Sounds like a great plan. No one has talked to me about it though. I will wait and see. 

And yes, families are hard around here too. It is every missionaries dream and goal for a family. As much as families are a part of the culture and traditions around here, most families are broken or incomplete. You have many mother led families where the father has never been a part of the picture. Or you have many unmarried individuals. It is so interesting. But in fact on my side too, we had a great lesson with a family yesterday. Father led and everything. It was wonderful. Powerful. They seem interested. We just got to keep with them. I am excited. 

I love that thought on continuous revelation. 

And have fun with your classes and studies. Looks like we will all be studying at the same time. That will be good. 

I love the excitement that come with missionary moments. This last week we went to the shop for something and got talking to a young man named Jaco. We got talking and it led to testifying of the help that we can gain through Jesus Christ. He asked why we would choose to go on mission and things like that. The interest was there. It was a sweet conversation. Got a return appoint and everything. He wasn't home when we went to meet him, but we followed up with him and something came up. Things happen. It was just exciting in praying for him and for the chance to talk and give him the life changing message of the restored gospel. I love this gospel. It still gives me those excited goosebumps. Thanks for making it a part of our lives. It has been great to see people change. So cool.

Dad, i love you!!!!

Mom, i am sorry for all of the stress that come through finals and final projects. I remember those and are grateful for your help with those late nights and weekends. 

Things are moving and changing around. Things are changing rearranging. People coming and going. Thats a part of life. Now we get to look back at these memories with joy. These precious times are wonderful moments. "Moments are the molecules that make up eternity." 

Thanks for the help with the money. Still got a couple of things that i might get. But i will probably save a bit for the time in Cape Town and for the travels. I haven't heard any things about it either, but i will have save some for it. 

As for time and place. Still need to confirm on the place. They weren't at church so we are going to confirm this week. But as for time i think about 4 or 5 as normal would work out. Even if there is one machine my companion and i will work things out because of the time zones are different, we will work out something. 

And hey i carry around your pictures and i sometimes brag about my family. Not too often, but i like to do it whenever i can. :) 

I love you Mom!!!

Bry, love you too Elder Bro!!!

Meagan, i remember our Christmas movie night dance thing. I was running around everywhere. But at least made an ornament out of it. :) good luck with all of the finals and such. Finish strong. You are down to 1 1/2 years of school. That is crazy!! Enjoy every moment. Make them count. Keep working hard and keep on swimming. Love you Meagan!!

Heidi, i always love hearing from you. Hope that your project went well. You are looking good. Keep working hard and when you graduate next year, you will be ready to take one the big world. Oh wait, you still have a couple years before graduation. Make the time count. Enjoy every moment. Love you Heidi!!!

Jera, i am happy to hear you are feeling better. As happy to hear you had some time to spend with Gavyn. Looks like you got him to come down hey. 

Between these two great talks. Tough one. For the people that i know and according to what they need. I would probably use Elder Andersons talk. So many think faith comes or stays passively. But there is choice and action that is needed to help faith grow. And faith is meant to grow. 

As for the Christmas season here. Not too crazy. In fact stores are shutting down. Which for some of these big businesses it is a weird business move. But hey, at least everyone is getting some time with family. 

Thanks for the pictures. Heidi is looking great. And Kora is zoned in on that phone. :) great pictures. 

I love you!!!

Well. I hope that you all doing great. Have a wonderful week. May the Spirit continue to guide you all. I love you and miss you. I look forward to seeing you next week. We will get ready for it. 

Love you!!!!

Love, Elder Pennington

December 7th 2015

Hey you guys,

Well it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Our tree is up and it is about 30C outside, that is on the days it is not raining. That has been a little crazy of a week. Nothing too bad, the holidays are for sure upon us. It is not often that we have a wednesday with 6 lessons planned. In the end we had only two. Everyone is just dodging us or busy with something else. People are even saying good-byes for holidays. Which makes it hard for me because they won't be back by the time transfers come. So i have to do them now. But besides those funny people i have been able to focused pretty well. And despite the dropped appointments, we did have some pretty cool lesson. The highlight was probably with the Pangel family. They are solid members. And we have been working on the family mission plan with them and they have been sharing their missionary moments with us. This last week they were walking in town(which they do all the time because of no car, they even walk a couple kilometers to church, great family) and they saw a family. The youngest pointed and said, mom we have to convert them. And so they went and talked with the family and built a friendship. And now the ball is rolling for them. So cool. It was simply amazing to see the joy that the pangels had as they told us this story, they were all glowing. It was awesome. It is really cool this small things that we get to experience here in the Lord's service. Anywho, lets keep moving forward...

Dad, thanks for the pictures. I especially like the one of Heidi and Mom feeding ducks, Heidi is getting tall. 

But wow it looks like Penningtons are pretty big over there. Over here i have found a Porter st. Probably done in honor of my serving here :) but besides that there is a town named Pennington in KZN (KwaZulu Natal) which is one of the Providences here. Unfortunately out of my mission boundaries. But maybe one day. Because there is probably a connection somewhere. With Pennington being an English name. The town was probably settled by a Pennington from England. He might have been a war figure as well. But that is just my guess. 

But thats cool about Dustin, drones are getting popular. I hear they are trying to work something with drones and Amazon. Drone delivery. Technology these days. When i left for mission i would think of star wars when we talked about drones. Where is this world going? But cool happy to hear everything is good on that side. 

I love you dad!!!

Mum, i am happy i never had to get a tan for ballroom. Benefits of being the guinea pigs. But thats for all of the exciting Christmas updates. We have a good idea about what we will skype with but we will just have to confirm. But wow is it sneaking up on us. 

I am slowly getting my Christmas presents. Thanks for taking care of the card. 

And yes the correct flight plans came in. Cape town to london to dallas to home. That is quite the flight. Should be good. For the most part i think i will be with the other missionaries for most of the way. At least until london if not dallas. Because coming here the others took salt lake to dallas to london. So they will probably take that again. And in changing the flight plans for me, they probably just changed the final leg. So it will be nice to have someone else on the flight.

For sure mixed emotions. But this has become a second home. Luckily we do have to eternities to catch up with those on this side of the world.
Well the upcoming weeks are looking good and festive, so hope you have a great week. Love you Mom!!!!

Bry, love you Brother!!!!

Meagan, aren't you just a busy little bee. Thanks for the pictures. Just so you know that young Pangel girl, she is fourteen right now and reminds me of you. At least the you that was fourteen when i left. Crazy to think that that time has passed huh? Well i am happy dance is going well. Keep working hard it pays off. Well have fun, know i will be home soon. Maybe we can go on a double or something :) 

Love you Meagan!!!!

Heidi, wow you are a tall little one aren't you? Growing up too fast. Hope the essay went well. For me i like the penny and i think we should keep it. But sounds like a good music program. I love Carol of the Bells. Hope to hear it soon. Have a great week buddy. Enjoy. Love you!!!!!

Jera, thanks for the Pictures. Funny little Kora. Fast sunday. :) for my fast sunday run, it will be a good sprint. You are right, this is what i was trained for. What i have prepared for. It is show time. 

Hope you have a great week. Love you Jera!!!

Well even with the heat Christmas is in the Air. Lights are coming on and everything. It is the time to be happy and remember Christ. I love you all so much. Hope you enjoy your week. See you soon. 

Love Elder Pennington

November 30th 2015

Hey you guys,

This has been a pretty simple, hot, a bit rainy, thanks giving filled, awesome week. Nothing special went on. Thanksgiving was nice, celebrated it alone, but i tried throughout the day to give prayer of thanksgiving. It felt good to take a look at all of the many wonderful blessing i have been given. So many blessings. We even sang count you blessings for church. Everyone was mindful of it being thanksgiving, but unfortunately it did not bring turkey and pies. But that is okay. 

I am sorry, you all ask for stories, and i lack in them most of the time. This is not much different. But Heidi made it more specific and asked for my favorite story. So i will share my favorite experience of the week. 

Lately we have been teaching a young man named Siyabonga. He has a baptismal date for the 3rd of January and he is pretty cool. He is not working too much but is looking for a job, so we can see him often. Already in the commandments with him. But this week we talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was a simple lesson because his english is not the best. But it was still pretty powerful. In talking about baptism, it was great to hear his excitement concerning it. Everything is just moving along nicely. It is just really cool.

Then there was last Sunday, gave some blessings to a family, with exams and stuff going on, they just needed a little more help. It has been great to give many blessings to the people of my mission. Makes me grateful for Dad, who was willing to give one to us. His example has been great. Makes me as excited for the day when i can give a fathers blessing to my own family. 

Too many thoughts have been going through my head lately. But i must stay focused.

Dad, i did get the family newsletter. It looks great. Sorry i have not been able to write anything. Not much time, but soon. 

It is great how mission is a micro-life. We learn so much in these two years, shows our true character and potential even. A time of great learning. 

That is a funny story. If i were to end up in Salt-lake, i probably would have gone home with one of my SACTM brothers i will have gone home with. Then i would have made it through the trip with someone else. But most likely i will be alone after the stop in Europe. Or wherever. Whatever happens, happens. 

It is great to hear that Brandon is doing well. He is a good kid. 

Blessings of a living a covenant life. I love those quotes and will tuck them away somewhere. They will provide for a great study. 

Nice groupie though. You are more in touch with the lingo than i am. Scary thought. I didn't even know there was such thing as a groupie. :) 

I love you dad!!!

Mom, that looks like a very busy week. But you did get a small break on thursday. For my side i got pizza for my comp and i. It was good. Nice place called Romans. They are like little ceasars. I have heard rumor that they are owned by little ceasars. Just like game is our walmart. I did get a tree though. Small hut nice. Makes me want to watch a Charlie Brown Christmas. Just on the look out of Souvenirs. 

Zach's back, Matthew's almost back. Where has the time gone. 

I love the story of Abinidi, i also love the bit of humor in it. He comes in disguise and teaches again. They capture him. Bring him before the king. The priests ask an Isaiah question. He starts talking about the 10 commandments. They are angry want to kill him. He starts to grow and says that he has not finished what he was sent to say, and on top of that, he has not yet answered their question. So don't touch him. He was a strong and faithful man, until the very end. Bold as a lion. A great example of courage.

Yup, for me everything is the same. No changes.

Thanks mom, i love you!!!

Bry, members are too kind to us. If we happen to be there at the time they are either having or preparing dinner, there is magically some for you. Even if you were just there for a moment, they take care of you and you can't decline. All of this kindness has made me want to be a great member to the missionaries. 

Keep up the good work. Love you Brother!!!

Meagan, that is a busy week. Did you buy anything for black friday. They had some black friday stuff going on over here. But mostly on food items. It doesn't get very crazy over here, but happy to here that you survived. 

Keep busy these holidays. Good luck with the program coming up. Too much shopping. Love you Meagan!!!

Heidi, Wow. 25.54. That is cool. You must have been saving for a while. If you were here you would have just over R250. Cool huh. Bet the shoes look great. 

I just remembered some more things. We had the primary program yesterday. It was cool and funny. I thought of you. And all of the little ones making faces and funnies. It was nice. Also we were at the store and i heard a kid not too far away telling his dad "look it's superman, look it's superman." And then his dad yelled out, "hey clark." Not quite sure who they were talking about, but it made me smile. People are funny around here. 

I love you Heidi!!!

Jera, those are some great pictures. Cute little ones. Growing up so fast. I think i remember Kora being as small as duke. Time flies. I too am bad in the picture department. But hopefully i will be able to get some pics of families soon. 

Those are funny little ones. Duke and his hat, funny story.

Love you Jera!!!!

Well, hope that is good with stories and such. Too much funnies. I love you all very much and hope you have a great week.

Love, Elder Pennington

November 23rd 2015

Hey you guys!!!!!

This has been quite the week. Full of appointments. Both with investigators and the chevy dealership. Too much going on in my life. But with transfers i have survived. Still here in George. Still with Elder Katwala. Still district leader. My district is the same. Hard to believe that time is far spent. Elder Mei turns a year this week. I have been a district leader for more than a year now. And i am still trying to get it right. But i have been able to get a glimpse at the growth. We took our car to get serviced. And then friday i got to deal with Knysna's car as well. Small thing that i have had to take charge of and run with them. Boy has my mission been gnawing at my comfort zone. :) which is a good thing i guess. 

It has been a great week. We have a baptism planned now. Siyabonga has been progressing very well. He is working hard to understand and is doing great. We also helped a member move this past week. He introduced us to the new tenants. And we talked for about an hour and a half with them. Answering questions and explaining simple truths. The older man is pretty set but willing to read the Book of Mormon. The younger man has been thinking about giving up on Christianity with all of the confusion around. All these many churches. Also he has a small family. With a young girl who is beginning to ask questions. He wants to be able to answer then for her...the right way. No fake answers. It was a great conversation. But small moments like that have brought good out of the week. With no trip to PE this week we are able to start this transfer right and hit the ground running. Should be good.

Dad, Yes i miss on another thanksgiving. That is okay. I can still be thankful over here. Hard to believe that it is November already. And yeah, i feel a little relieved, it sounds like our American holidays are making us fat :) but then again, here people have braai day that can also lead to a little extra meat on the bones. :) Things are nice over here though. It is nice watching the different cultures at work. Christmas is big with family, food, and beer. Santa does visit over here, just maybe not as big as back home. Last year i was in a township and Christmas trees were rare. Now i have some town in my area and so things might be a bit different. We will just have to wait and see. 

And yes, the Lord does look out for all of us. He is helping out. In the very details. 

Youth conference sounds great, and sounds like a great talk from President Riggs. A perfect illustration, never to be forgotten. 

Not trunky here. Still working hard. Siya, the young man i talked about earlier is scheduled for baptism on the 3 of January. Which if it is like we think that will be my last Sunday. And we will see who else we can find. Just gotta keep swimming. 

Yup it is hot here. Until it rains then it is pretty cold and it doesn't feel too much different than an Az winter. 

Now i have just got to make each day count. Love you dad!!

Mom, the best thing about this week was probably the conversation we had with the two men at the move. That was cool. The young man brought up the question why do bad things happen to good people. It then led to a perfect moment to give them the Book of Mormon. I just know he will be able to find answers through that wonderful book and through the spirit. It was nice. 

It was just a busy and hectic but great week. These are precious moments. I loved the phrase "the sisters turn everything into a miracle." So true. Missionaries have an ability to find the small precious tender mercies. Manna from Heaven. Missions are full of miracles. 

Preparing for thanksgiving. Nice. Thanks for the money. No problems with no package i would probably never get it anyways. I will probably withdraw a bit here and there and get some things from street vendors. It is hard though being a white guy all dressed up, they try to get more out of you. So i will have to do some negotiations :) wish me luck. 

I think i am also going to get a Christmas tree this week. 

I love the snow funny. So true. 

Mom, i love you!!!

Bry, just a note to tell you i love you and enjoy the turkey.

Megan, sounds like quite the week. Fun youth conference. We never got anything like that. We did have one where we went tracting with the missionaries. That was interesting. But hey, good luck with dance, you will do well when you give your best effort. Love you!!!

Heidi, you are growing up too fast, i think i will only get home in time to interview your first boy friend. Sounds like you are an active part in school. Cool beans bud. Hope your break is great. Love you!!!

Jera, thanks for thinking about sending pictures. It is the thought that counts. 

Yeah, it will all seems like one crazy dream. Hard to believe i am down to my lasts. Even the last bit of energy. If anything, that plane ride home will be pretty exhausting. Between travel and the conflicting emotions inside, it will leave me with out much energy. :) But thanks. Enjoy the week. Love you!!!!

Well my familia. I love you all and hope you have a great thanksgiving. Enjoy some pie for me. Love you much.

Love, Elder Pennington

November 16th 2015

Hey you guys!!!!!!

This has been a pretty good week. We had a lot of fun. Had plenty of appointments at the beginning, but had to roll with things as they would slowly drop on us. But we did get to do service. As well as enjoyed the new people we met. Got some referrals and enjoyed contacting them. Have some great potentials in our teaching pools. With that we are also hunting down some less actives. We also had a family of 6 (less active) come to church after a while. We have been teaching them for a while. The wife is great and desires to come, but work keeps her away. The husband is a little less keen, but lately he has been joining in on the lessons and seems to be catching on. With him coming to church we are hoping his desire to do what is right is growing. But unfortunately we get to work around some habits that he has picked up over time. I am grateful for the commandments to keep us in line. Satan is a tricky little one. deceives and distracts. It has been cool to see some great changes in people. We also took another little trip to Knysna. Spent some time there for an interview. 

But that is about it for us. We will be having a regional broadcast as well. It will be treated like stake conference which will be interesting because we will be alone as a unit, so at most we will have 70ish people at this "stake conference" :) but i am looking forward to it. It is nice to hear from our leaders. We are now in week six. Time has flown. This week transfer news will come, but none of us are expecting any changes. But if any happen i will let you know next week.

But yeah, here we go...

Dad, thanks for inviting and doing missionary work. So the home is going good. Can't wait to see pictures. Change has been a big part of growth so hopefully this change will inspire come great growth. 

Counseling would be fun. I have considered counseling. When i read my blessing i think of counseling. I am still considering that or English teacher. All i know is i want to help people and try and read along the way. Which brings me to something else. I read a very interesting book this week. Found it in our boarding. It is called Spirit of Fire by John Pontius. It was good, luckily a quick read. It was very interesting. It is fictional but follows a family. They go through their struggles and everything but their way of facing them was a great example of faith. They trusted in the Lord. Relied on the spirit and everything like that. One of the sons served in South Africa and had some crazy experiences. It was a very interesting book. I will look for the sequel later. But i bring it up because of what you said about doing what the Lord wants. This family had a fire, they were farmers and had to trust when it came to that, even to keeping the Sabbath holy. It was a great read. The father in the book reminded me of you. Your faith and willingness to do what the Lord would have you do and say. Thanks for being such a great example. 

So we are doing family history selfies now? :) that is cool. I wonder what will be next. We will probably start having family history birthday parties or something. :) I can't wait to be able to get back into that swing of things. 

Thanks for the great pictures. I love the costumes. 

I love you dad!!!

Mom, yeah it is getting warm here. But it will get a little cold at night. And it will rain as well. Luckily the peak of summer will hit in February, so that will be nice. So i have the fan ready for heat and a big blanket ready for the cold. I do get cold easy. 

I have not heard anything yet either. Maybe this means i will be out here even longer. :) But maybe it will come soon. Most people do get travel plans by this time. Andios (i don't know) looks like we will just have to roll with it. But my guess with a date will be the week of the 7th. The 7th is the transfer day and so will will probably leave the next day. But we will find out soon enough. 

I love the talk from Elder Holland as well. I love the scripture, "Lord, I believe. Help thou my unbelief." It does start with that seed. And then nourish and focused on it will grow. With t tree no one focuses one the big tree that it can become, but rather they enjoy watching the tree grow over time. They focus on what it is in that moment and nourish it and care for it. So it is with us.

Happy to hear 

Meagan it dating. But you might want to worry about skating, they might just hold hands to keep balance :) just kidding :) happy to hear the growth coming from the girls. They are doing so much. Growing up too fast.

Thanks for the money. It came in handy this week. We got some romans pizza because it was my companions birthday. So thank you. 

I love the pictures. Those deer look kind of crazy. But i love the best friends quote. Best friends truly are the best. 

I love you Mom!!!!!

Bryant, Well brother. Looks like you are doing well over there. Keep working hard. I love you!

Meagan, you dating machine. I am happy you are enjoying life. Keep practicing and dancing (you can never really call that homework can you?). Happy you are enjoying football. Are you going to end up dating a football player, just make sure he is good and just like Bry. That is the only type of footballer i think we could allow you to date, unless you mean footballer like over here, which means soccer, those people i don't even know about. So caution :) . I think that is enough dating counsel for today. 

Keep working hard in school. When it comes to splits with the Sisters, just be yourself and be willing to listen to the spirit as to anything you might say. Be ready to bear your testimony. Talk with the sister and enjoy the time there. Observe and watch the way she works, take some mental notes. And have some fun!!

You will do great.

For my side everything is good. Just enjoying life.

Love you Meagan!!!

Heidi, girl, you are growing up fast. Now you are petting deer and feeding them peach leaves. I didn't know that deer eat peach leaves. That is cool stuff. Thanks for the great stories. I am sorry your tongue was black. That isn't good. Hope it gets better. Happy you are preping hard for the holidays. I am here enjoying my water. I heard a Christmas song in the store the other day, so they are preping too. But i am still looking for my Christmas tree here. Oh don't forget to send the pictures.

You are one smart cookie aren't you? Keep it up Bud. Love you!!!!

Jera, thanks for the pictures. Wow those ones are growing up fast. And Gavyn's home crazy how time flies. Happy the ambush went well. Fairs and petting zoos are fun. Feel bad for Kora. It is not fun to get snapped at especially by a duck. All we deal with are dogs. I have had to take many deep breaths and open the gate just to get to the door. Luckily most dogs are just bark, but that is pretty scary sometimes. The thing i most worry about though is the fleas. Now those things are annoying. Memories :) 

Thanks for your emails as well. They always have such funny stories and adventure. 

Love you!!!!

Well another email down. Thanks for everything, you are all so great. Hope you have awesome weeks. Keep giving it all you got. Can't wait to talk next week. I quote Heidi with i miss and love you all bunches and bunches. :) 

Love, Elder Pennington the Elder

November 9th 2015

Hey You Guys!!!

Hard to believe that another week has come and gone. I guess time flies when you spend time else where. This week we had Zone training and interviews in Port Elizabeth. That Place feels much like home now. The training was great. Interviews were wonderful. Got to see President Merrill and this is probably my last not departing interview. Not a very comforting thought. 

Also got a chance spend Saturday in Knysna. A very popular tourist place here. But we didn't go for vacation, rather exchanges. I was able to spend some more time with Elder Mei. It was great. But I am grateful I am not working in Knysna... they have too many crazy roads over there. Here is the picture. Mountain. There are houses along the mountain and not all of the roads are nice and easy switchbacks. But we made it through the day safely. Felt great to spend the time with Elder Mei.

Besides that, the week was slow and steady. And now we are ready for a great week here in George. Should be great!

Dad, Thanks for the great email. Sounds like a great conference. I love it when we get investigators to conferences. We had Zola and Nicky (investigators in cleary) come to one we had with Elder Stevenson. They loved it. He had talked about saying a prayer just to find a lost toy for his kids. Zola connected with that. For a child those things matter. And to God those things that matter to us matter to Him. And then those who come to General conference. Bonus! Unfortunately this last conference the only investigators that came were 11 and 12. But it was still great. The Lord works in Mysterious ways. 

I like those 4 primary questions. Having the answers there provides for strength when those secondary questions arise and threaten our peace to destroy. 

Has it been four years since trek?? Wow. Enjoy. 

I Love you Dad!

Mom, Thanks for the Arizona Greetings. Things are getting warm around here. But it has been nice. There is a bit of a breeze (benefits of being next to the ocean). But moving forward. 

Happy to hear you went out with the Missionaries. Sounds like you are getting a lot done with your personal mission. Thanks for the help. It looks like that will be a great rescuing party. I know it will work out well. If anything it will instill a love for one another within the active sisters opening their eyes to serve and lift those around them. 

Alot of painting going on. Thats cool. can't wait to see the pictures. 

Everything is going good over here. Just preparing for the holiday season as well. With out Thanksgiving, Christmas is next. ( I am on the search for a cheap tree again. Hopefully I can get lucky. Fingers crossed. 

Thanks for everything. I love You Mom!!

Bryant, That is exactly what everyone thinks. At least those who know about AZ. But you meet many who kind of get the picture after I say, just next to california. :) But yeah... I love you Elder!

Meagan, Are you preping for Trek? That will be fun for you. Looks like you are staying busy. Soon you will have a break. Keep working hard! When is your next date planned? Have fun okay! Read a good book. Love you Meagan!!

Heidi, Wow you are a great kid aren't you? You are working hard. Service, Stu Go, Perfect attendence, Studio C birthday partys. You must feel on top of the world. :) Well congrats and keep working hard. Take some time to sharpen your saw though. How is Studio C going? Still as funny as ever? Well little Sis, I love you!!

Jera, Did the Ambush work? :) Just wanted to mentioned that I love you too!

Well Thanks for the great emails and pictures. Hope you all have a wonderful week. Enjoy the journey of each day. make every moment count. and Look Both ways before crossing the street.

Cool, Hope you all liked the pictures. Can't wait to tell what some of them mean. Enjoy the week!

I love you all very much!

Love, Elder Pennington 

Porter Sent Pictures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 2nd 2015

Hey You Guys!!!

Well this has been a good week. Had some very interesting lessons. As well as some normal ones. Been moving forward more with the family mission plan. Slow but steady. It has been one of those faith promoting kind of things. We had a great Lesson With Henrico and Luhandro about the Book of Mormon. My love for that special book just keeps on growing. I always can't help but smile when people ask why they haven't heard of the book before. "Well That is why we are here in your home to testify that this is the word of God. Read, ponder and pray about it."

We also had the chance to watch the Priesthood Session of Conference. Very nice. I love all of the talk about faith. Now is the time to grow in our faith. We need to grow in our faith or the moving time will weaken it. Our little flame will go out if we don't take care of it. This Gospel is simple but so profound. I have been reading the words of Nephi. For one he says "My Heart Delighteth in..." He found so much delight in the things of God. But then everything he say is so very plain. Straight forward and to the point. The Scriptures are just so nice. My soul also delights in the Word of God.

We have also met with a couple of couples that had just went on about some of the hardships they are going through. hardships that began with not keeping God's commandments. Distrust and heartbreak fell between them. All we couple do was testify about the healing power of Christ's atonement and the growth and life that comes as we obey and follow Him. Mission shows one a lot of things.

Anyways...

Dad, Sounds like you have been doing some great pondering. Keeping commitments and covenants do give us a great perspective on life and everything else. 

Pennington Family Ties is back into business. I only now remember that trip to the temple. Not knowing what was going on. I think I was 13 or 14. Pretty young now that I think of it. We got to start having interviews with President Riggs. Things changed only a little bit, but it brought a great life change into all of us. A greater focus on everything. Family time was as always something very special. We have the best family ever!

Yeah, no halloween here. i was going to try hard and find a Spiderman Shirt and order a nametag that says "Elder Parker" but I never got around to it. And no one around here would care. :) 

Things are good on this side. Entering summer. we are not neutral anymore. It is either hot or rainy and cold. For some reason it can't choose. I don't know how many blankets to have nearby. 1 sheet for when it is hot or 3 when it is cold. :) Too much!

But yeah, thanks Dad. I love the funnies as always. I love you Too!!

Mom, No package it good. You are right. It probably wouldn't get to me until after anyways :) We will work with that. Yeah this week was good. Nothing too crazy. But this next week we will be traveling to PE for Zone Training and Interviews. It will be good to see everyone again. Specially President and Sister Merrill. It is so different not being so close to them. But it should be a great trip. I am looking forward to going down there. But the trip will take a couple of days out of our area. So will are going to try and make it an exceptional week. 

Those sound like some great lessons at church. Reverence is important. There is the scripture "Trifle not with Sacred things" Talking about the Book of Mormon. Interesting to treat the Book of Mormon with the greatest reverence is to read it and make it a part of your life. :) 

Hope you enjoy your week. I love you Mom!

Bryant, it is amazing how fast one can acclimatize and get use to something. i might have gone a little soft. But never the less I only wear my short-sleeve shirt once in a while. I wear the long-sleeve every day. :) And I love telling people I am from Arizona because I get two reactions. 1 Oh good you are not from the factory. 2 Oh you are too white to come from AZ. So no matter how hot or not hot it is I am just not meant to stay in the sun for long. :) I love you Bryant! You keep well and have fun!

Meagan, I am happy you went on a date with Parker Wright. He is a great kid. happy you had fun. Not too bad of a week. Better over there. Here all of the youth are stressing over exams. So happy to hear you are in a semi stress free world right now. And you are such a great friend to help plan something for Courtney. Keep being a great friend to all. You will enjoy splits. It is a great time to learn more and get to know what is going on around you in the missionary work. Love You Meagan!!!

Heidi, It looks like you went for Halloween dressed as a pretty pretty Princess. (Or a Fairy :) You look good!. yes, we loved making Donuts for Halloween and other fun celebrations. You should also try the activity when we ate food like the people in Jerusalem. That one was a lot of fun as well. I thought the food was nice. Especially now I have tasted some more foreign foods, that one is pretty close to home. :) Family traditions are great aren't they Heidi! I love you Sis! Have a great Week!!

Jera, Yeah, Duke takes the cake. I like the whole flip flop and shoe thing going on. That would be fun. George is going good. We have been getting better and better. Just a little rains slows the town down. Sad that some of our area has dirt roads, but luckily not our whole area, so we can still get some work done. 

We are coming along with our new investigators. Tonight we will have a little FHE kind of thing with some of their member neighbors. It will be fun.yup, things keep on moving around here. Gotta love it!

Hope you enjoy your week With your missionary ambushes and all :) Love you Jera!

Well My Wonderful Family. It has been great to talk to you all. I love you all so much. Hope you all have a super wonderful week. Make it something Special! 

Love, Elder Pennington the Elder 

Oct 26th 2015

Hey You Guys!

Well things have been good this week. Things are picking up. Moving forward. But unfortunately time is flying by too fast! Time and I have had some interesting moments this last week. but we are getting better. 

It has been a great week. Lots of great appointments. Had some fun getting to know some new awesome potential investigators. We have a couple of young men here that we started teaching this last week. Had a wonderful first lesson. They seem like sweet potential priesthood holders. That is just what George needs. We are getting to the point of trying to think outside of a branch. To think and work as a ward. Being a mission branch we are out in the middle of nowhere and are left out of some of the cool things. SO we are beginning to put the shoulder to the wheel that one day down the line George might be more of a stake of Zion rather than just a branch. And it has been fun getting the members more and more involved in this great work. 

But things are going good right now.

Dad, I loved that talk you gave us about prayer. It was very nice. I have been working on my prayers. I find that sometimes when I get up in the morning and pray, I doze a little. But i have been doing better. Trying to say a nice prayer before I doze off :) But I have been able to reconnect a little more with my prayers and it has been very nice. 

Thank you for the conversion story of Guy and Mildred. Awesome! You know what I knew an elder Sanders here on mission. He recently went on home to Arizona. Maybe? 

Anyways our family would be quite different if not for that example. Examples are powerful. In the family mission plan. we stress the examples a lot. The curiosity of our examples is stirring in the hearts of those around us. To have the eyes to see and the hearts to seize the small teaching and testifying moments follows. Planting seeds and even reaping some of the fruit. 

Nothing new on this side. George is treating me too good. :) I am having fun here. Getting to know the members has been great. The thing I am loving about George is trying out everything I have been able to learno my mission thus far. It has been a great mission full of learning and now I get to use all of the tricks. It has been nice. I am loving my companion. We have had a lot of fun.  

Sounds like some nice studies. I have been going through the Book of Mormon very good this week. reading the Isaiah chapters. There is so much found in those chapters. So much testifying of how much Christ loves us. I have heard that the Infinite Atonement is a great book. One day. 

Thanks Dad. Love You!!

Mom, So this is where I get my lack of sending pictures from. :) I thought it was just the lack of time to find WiFi. :) Thanks though.

It was a good week. We did some service. Helped clean a front lawn. Mowed it and all. Fun. Also cleaned the chapel. If there is a need... call on the full time missionaries. :) I have grown in my love of service. We are the ultimate substitute teachers. 

The week was good. It was great to catch you on emails too. Thanks for your help with the paper. Crazy how time flies. Talking about time flying it is just a bit closer to Christmas. Skyping shouldn't be a problem if I am still in George. But come transfers if there are any changes we will work with it. :) This world is smaller than we think. Technology is awesome. \

Hard to believe that more and more people I know are getting Married. I went to seminary with Rebecca. Now she is getting married. weird. 

Yeah not too much going on here. 

Mom, Thanks for the great email. Take your time on the pictures. Love You!!!

Bryant, Hope things are well for you in the getting cold Penn State. This week we hit a wopping 29 C. I don't know the conversion of that but everyone thought it was hot. It wasn't that bad though. Keep Working hard though. Love You Bry!!!

Meagan, sounds like a great talk and a great dance. Thanks for the pics. I think I have a Superman shirt just like his. Interesting :) Happy you are enjoying your dating life. Keep having fun. 

But know you are a busy busy little butterfly. Take a break now and then okay. Naps are nice. Well I am happy you are doing well. I love you!!!

Heidi, I hear you have a gorgeous haircut. I didn't know they had student council in grade 2. Oh wait you are in grade 6 aren't you. Wow has time flown. I wish you the best on that. You would be great. Just be yourself and nice to everyone and you will make a difference in the school, even without being on the student government. Well you keep working hard okay. i love you Bud!!

Jera, Hope you are well as well. Love you!!!

Well another week down. Hope you all have a wonderful week. Make the moments count. Ponderize, Ponderize, Ponderize! :) Well i love you All. 

Love, Elder Pennington the Elder

Oct 19th 2015

Hey You Guys,

Where does the time go. For one it is hard to believe that it is Monday again. But also I have to apologize again, this Monday has escaped us, so my letter will be kind of short. Sorry. But I will try and make it good. 

For starters, transfer week has come and gone. I now have my new companion. Elder Katwala. We have been having a good time together. I have a feeling that my time with him will be great. 

On Tuesday when we went to PE, we were told to stay at the Motherwell boarding. Memories. Too much. Weird to think that it has been about a year since I first headed to Motherwell. Elder Mei's year mark is coming up now. Oh and have I mentioned that he is now in my district. He is serving in Knysna. Which is nice because then I will be able to for sure see him before I go. 

Which brings me to my next order of business. I got an email from the mission office. I need to give them some info that will allow me to fly home.To make things easy I just sent the form to you Mom. I think for the most part I just need the international airport. Thanks.

Anywho, it was a pretty good week. Nothing too crazy. But looking forward to great weeks to come. :)

Dad, I look forward to reading that talk about prayer. I have been trying to get even better in my prayers. I am happy to hear about the work going on at home. I find it interesting to hear stories about sister missionaries. We don't have any over here. 

That is cool about President Riggs. I don't know the name. He is probably in the zone leaders area. But yeah PE needs strong men like him on the high counsel. It is a good stake.

Heidi is a great young lady. Growing up too fast. 

And yes the flight was crazy, but i think the adrenaline of mission got me through it. And the nerves of going home will get me through it again :) But it was long and okay. 

I loved Elder Christoffersons talk, i wrote the most notes on that. We come across people all the time. Many roads lead to the top of the mountain. Summed it up nice. Straight and narrow. Things are good here though. Enjoying every moment. Trying to make the most of every moment as well. 

Well Dad, I love you So much!!

 

Mom,

I miss your Sunday school class too. Things happen, but that is where a secure anchor in the gospel helps. Thanks for helping me secure my anchor. 

Keep up the good work that you are doing. You are now more involved in missionary work. Thanks for doing your part. 

Thanks for filling out the form. The email should still work. Thanks :)

And thanks for letting me know how much is on the card. That will be perfect. 

And thanks for all of the wonderful pictures. I like the new haircut. I plan on getting my haircut soon. I never know what to ask the person. I am too easy going when it comes to my hair. :)

Mom, thanks for everything you have done for me. I love you so much!!

Bry, I don't know what kind of tracker, but i do know I can't go more that 120 Ks without it going off. But it is okay because the mission speed is 100Kmh so I do okay without the tracker going off. But the corrolla is nice. Probably a bit better than the aveo. Especially the Etios Which is like a tin can on wheels. In the wind it shakes so much. :)

I will enjoy the heat of summer for you over here. 

Love You Brother!

Meagan, Alex and Monster Mash sound like fun. :) Say hello to everyone you think might know me :) But two parties in a day is nice. I am happy you enjoyed the week. Keep Calm and Party on  :) Love you Meagan!!!

Heidi, I love the pictures. Especially the heart one. You are a clever little one aren't you. You are growing up quick quick. That is great indexing for anyone. I think you are 10 times better than me. I get like 40 names a week. Keep up the great missionary work. 

That is a cool dream you had though. It would be fun to play with President Monson. He is a really good man. Well Heidi I love you!!!

Jera, there is nothing too crazy here. But I do think I will bring home some Rooibos tea. Really interesting stuff that is. But weird how fast the time is going. And then there were two...

I am trying to get some little nik naks and things but, I never really get the time to do so. But hopefully I will bring home a trunk load of memories. :)

Thanks Jera. I am happy to know that I am not the only Pennington tea drinker :) I love you!!!

Well, how is that for a short email. I am sorry it didn't get to you before school, but know that it is a good FHE thing :) But I do love you all so very much. I hope you had a great day and look forward to talking again next week. :) :) :) :)

Love Elder Pennington the Elder

Oct 12th 2015

Hey you guys, so this is going to be a good email. Possibly short because not much had really happened this week. Just the same old same old. Teaching the Restored Gospel one lesson at a time. But the week was great. Had conference only a week late. Just need to listen to the priesthood session and i will be good. I loved it. Many great talks. Ponderizing has become a part of my life. I love it. It was a wonderful conference. I felt some sadness during Elder Bednars talk when i thought about how the Apostles i have grow up with, growing to love, are getting older. I cherish their words of wisdom even more. This is the true church. With Christ at the head. I loved Elder Christoffersons talk about Why Church. We come across that so much. At that talk just answered it so simply. Isn't General conference great?

Also we have entered into a new transfer. I am staying in George. But i am going to get a new companion. His name is Elder Katwala and he is from Uganda. I met him several times in Cape town. Seems like a great missionary. It will be a great transfer. 

Dad, i am sorry for your struggle. Buppo hair is so very bad. A terrible side effect that victims of the Sleeper get. Truly saddening. 

Cari seems like a great sister. I would be great to meet her sometime. What a wonderful conversion story. Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways. :) 

Love is so key in this work. As we are working with the members on hastening the work, my own desire keep on growing. My love is growing even more. But you come to find that love is something else like a muscle. Something you have to use to make it stronger. Service helps out so much. Love is vain if actions don't follow. If it does not drive you to do something good. Love is so important. 

Dad, I love you!!!!

Mom, I loved Elder Hollands talk. Thank you so much for everything. For your love ans support. For you example. For all you do. Thank you. 

Thanks for telling me about Cari. Conversion stories are so great. Something to remember and to continue to discover. A fire in this dark world. Her's seems so special, just because it was just her association with good people who had the light themselves. That precious and simple light. 

Thanks for your light. 

That is a lot of cookies. 

There were such great talks at conference. They really keep stepping it every year. I love the words of our dear church leaders. Ultimately given from a loving Father above.

I just have too many favorites from the sessions, and more to come with the priesthood session. 

Mom, I love you so very much!!!!

Bryant, we have a tracker  in our car. But that isn't too bad. What kind of car do you have? We have a Chevy Aveo. Not too bad of a car. I kind of like it. 

Well Brother, i love you too!!!! Keep working hard.

Meagan, 540+ cookies is a lot of crazy cookies. That is quite the work you are doing. Well worth it. Everything is good on this side of the world. Africa is treating me good. I don't have any crazy sickness or anything. That is a plus. 

But i am happy you are having a great week. Just keep working hard. Thanks for answering my questions. The weight room is a good place for dance. You don't have to climb all those stair after a long good practice. That must be nice. 

I love you Meagan!!!!

Heidi, well my apparently 11 year old sister. You are so grown up. And very talented. Calligraphy is cool. Soon you will probably have better handwriting than me. You probably already do. 

Keep relaxing. Relaxing is nice. You know what else is nice? Ponderizing is nice. You would love it. :) hope you have a great week. I love you Buddy!!!!

Jera, i love all these old pictures you are sending. Memories. Kind of. I can't really remember back that far, but i do like to pretend i do. Still i was too little then. Where has the time gone? Time is so very precious. Too much. 

Thanks Jera. Love you too!!!!

Well my wonderful dear family. I hope you all enjoy another wonderful week. May the Spirit be your constant guide. Love you and miss you all. Keep Calm and Ponderize! :) love you!

Love, Elder Pennington the Elder

Oct 5th 2015

Hey you guys!!!

Fist of all, Happy Birthday to you. Happt Birthday to you. Happy Birthday dear Heidioooooooooooooo. Happy Birthday to you!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, i will do that again later but for now, this week has been a good week. Not too much has happened. Kind of slow. But nevertheless it was a pretty powerful week. Had some great lessons. A lot of which had to do with the plan of salvation. I love that plan. To know these things has brought such great strength this last week. To know that Christ gave himself for us. That He knows exactly what we are going through. That is pretty special understanding. True comfort and peace.

We also got a new senior couple here in George. The Tiams. That is pronounced time. They seem like they will be a lot of fun the serve with. 

Other news, we did not get to catch General Conference this week, but our branch president is on top of things and will try and download it for is to watch next week. Nice. Normally we would have to wait two to three weeks in this situation. More than a month if we were in Cleary. But we will hopefully be able to watch it next week. That will be great. 

But i think that is about it for my life. Nothing too crazy. Same old same old. Transfers are coming up quick quick. On Saturday i will know if my world is going to changed around. Transfers always get me kind of excited. The idea of change makes me nervous sometimes, but you come to embrace it and trust in the Lord. Oh the things you learn on mission. 

Dad, i loved that experience you shared from President Faust. Precious time to ponder and pray and meditate. I love doing that. Sometimes it is nice to just slow down things and find peace. Last week we went to a place called Map of Africa. I will try to get you the pictures soon. It is not to far from here and doesn't really look too much like Africa, but it is a very peaceful place. There is also a very nice area of nearby Wilderness beach. Just so peaceful. We will probably have weekly planning up there on of these days. 

I am going to love taking the time to go and do the same in the temple now now. But until then i will find that peace within and on the mountain. 

Not too many very journal worthy type things. At least not to mention now. But we have be working hard here. Had a lesson with a recent convert of ours. Just reading Alma 41. She just started crying at the end, talking about how hard some of her challenges are and how sometimes she just wants to go back home. I don't know where exactly i was going with this but i then shared alma 7:11-13. Testified of Christ's Atonement and how He knows exactly what we are going through. It was short and simple but the atmosphere just changed. Each one of took something from that moment when the spirit spoke to us. Very special. 

But a move sounds like fun. Just let us know. What is going on mission if the family does move while you are gone. It would be nearly as exciting :) i support this one. 

Dad, thanks for the conference notes. I especially loved the one that said "mudwhole" that will be a good one. Also quick fact Elder Renlund was serving over here in the Africa Southeast area presidency. So he know Africa. That is cool. As well as Elder Stevenson, his great great something great grandfather was one of the first missionaries here in South Africa. Small world now. 

Dad I love you!!!

Mom, i love that quote from President Monson. Great thing happen when we make Him the center of our lives. Thanks for sharing that and the funny. Hope you enjoyed the Avengers movie. 

Four layer dip, that is one thing i miss. Especially at conference time. This last week we went to Spur. A Native American themed restaurant. Got some Nachos. But they weren't that good. No one can make Mexican like back home. Mexican food is great. Yum!

Thanks Mom. Hope you have a great week. Love you so much!!!

Bryant, i thought you might enjoy Braai day. :) love ya Brother Elder!!!

Meagan, i had a great week. Looks like you did too. Dad sent the picture. Quick questions. 1st, what is is his? I am not sure i have met him before. 2nd, you are in the dance room, right? Did they change the weight room into the dance room? 

Change is good. Hope you enjoy the break. Love you Meagan!!!

Heidi, Happy Birthday! You are now 11. Wow!!!! Just stop growing a bit okay. I think i left when you were 5 or 6 right? :) you are just too cute. Hope you had a great birthday. Love you Heidi!!!

Jera, thanks for the pictures. Soon we will great conference. Words like Ponderize are classic. :) we are very peculiar. 

South Africa has had great growth. Not as much as other African countries but still great growth. In fact the missionaries began here in Cape Town before anywhere else but somehow Joburg and Durden will both have temples before Cape Town does. Hopefully soon. It has been great to be apart of this work. 

Love you Jera!!!

Well it has been another great week. Looking forward to what will come. I love you all so very much. Have a wonderful week. 

Love, Elder Pennington

Sept 28th 2015

Hey you guys!!!!

Well I have had yet another wonderful week in George. Nothing major happening. The work is picking up sure but steady. Things are moving forward. Elder Si'ufanua and I are going to finish this transfer strong. We have two weeks to go, so we will see what we can do. But it has been a pretty great week. Spiritual highlight of the week. We have a man in our branch who wants his wife to join the church. So we have been teaching her. Recently we taught her about the Book of Mormon, she has had one for a while because of her husband, but now we were able to talk to her and answer her questions. Up until now she has had a hard time understanding the English in the Book. So she hasn't really been getting too much out of it. Then on Saturday she was stuck on the introduction (she had started over to try and understand more). Her husband came home from work and she mentioned her struggle. He asked if she had prayed. No. Then why not ask for our Heavenly Father's help. So that is what she did. Fast forward a couple of hours when we can for our appointment later in the afternoon. She was in 1 Nephi 10. And she understood pretty good. She told us what was going on, asked us a little of pronouncing, and a couple of other questions. And boom the spirit had helped her understanding grow. It was really cool. She was grateful for the understanding she received. To add to this she even connected her experience with Nephi and his experience of getting the plates from Laban. It was really a special moment. If only everyone had the faith to ask God and then keep on reading. Too often are we caught up in what we can't do or what we don't know that we stop moving forward. But then where is the growth? That was pretty cool.

Dad, thanks from that great quote from President Eyring. That love is important in all relationships. And it does have great application to missionaries and missionary work. 

What a great question! Children's game unique to over here. Come to think about it there isn't really anything too different over here. But i will keep my eyes open now. Maybe i will stumble upon something. Most of the time for family home evenings we need to bring the games. So it is just those things i know. 

But did i ever tell you that i was shopping in PE once and found the game abalone ( or however you spell that marble game you have) out of all the place i found it, it was in a shoprite in South Africa. Felt close to home for a moment. 

My studies have been simple this week. I was preparing for my talk. It was Elder Hales "Protecting Agency, Preserving Religious Freedom." So every day prior to Sunday i had read through the talk thinking about what i must speak about. It was probably one of the hardest topics i had been given. Very deep. But i think i pulled it off. Had a lot of Heavenly help on that one. It is amazing how much our agency and our religious freedom it being attacked. And it is up to us to use our agency to stand up for this freedom. 

Time is going too fast. Don't blink. But the memories will be priceless. The Gardners, a senior couple here a while ago came back to visit. We have been able to sit and talk and even make some visits with them. They remember so well the experiences they had here. The people. And so forth. Mission truely causes you to put your heart into a place. This has become a people that i love so dear. 

Okay one last thing dad. You mentioned that you don't have any a/c right now. I am sorry. Here in SA there is not normally an ac unit in our flats. No central heating either. It is down to the blankets and the fans. It has taken some adjusting but i think it will now be weird to have it any other way. Change is great that way.

I love you Dad!

Mom, thanks for the email. I love it. The emails don't have to be long, it is just great to hear from you. So this week i was reminded that i have a mission blog. Thanks for keeping that going for me. I even got to see Brys. Good to see that he is well. 

Thanks for reminding me of Wyatt. Miss that guy a lot. That is one cool thing i like around here is the kids. I will be driving down the street and they get all excited. It is so cool. Sharp sharp. Kids and memories. Thanks for the funnies. They were really funny. And congrats on the indexing victory.But yeah, this has been a pretty simple week. I taught institute this week. It was good. One of these days i will actually be able to go to an institute class of my own. One day. But Mom thanks for everything.

I love you Mom!!

Bryant, this week we celebrated heritage day. It also was national braai day (that is pronounce national bry day). So that is something that i will remember about South African holidays. Happy National Braai Day. 

I love you Bryant!

Meagan, you will get to Idaho with all of the work you have been doing. Just keeping working hard. I am happy ballroom is finally going to Idaho, that has been the plan since i was in 10th grade. I am happy you are able to experience it. With all of the dancing you have been doing, i can't wait to see you perform. You are so great. Hope you have a great week. Love you Meagan!!

Heidi, i love yard sells. Can't wait to see another good one. You are almost on break. What are you going to do? Enjoy the break. Keep working hard and have some fun. Hug Mom and Dad for me. Love you Heidi!

Jera, thanks for the pictures. I will one day get better at sending pictures. It is hard being a driver, i have to drive to PE rather than take the picture of the trip. Luckily me companion is getting some for me. But i will get more soon. But one day we will have a bog slide show pf my few mission pictures. That will be great.

Love you Jera!

Well i hope you all have a great week. Make the most of it. Love you and miss you all. Keep up your good work. 

Lov, Elder Pennington the Elder

September 21st 2015

Hey you guys!!!

Well this week was pretty simple. Just a four hour trip to PE. Had a nice zone conference. It was nice. Crazy to think that the zone events are becoming less and less. But i love those moments of instruction. Then we had a short exchanges with the zone leaders in PE, so that they don't have to travel to George. It was nice. Then stayed one more night. Then to the trip home. I only struggled with tiredness the last hour. I am proud of myself. I am so used to just sleeping in the car journeys. But i made it okay. 

The last couple of the days in the week were kind of slow, but we made the most of them. But it might be a little hard with the rugby world cup. I don't know if you remember the movie Invictus. But the Springboks are pretty good in rugby and people love them here, esp. The Afrikaaners. But we will get by. I might get a little caught up in the rugby fever and buy a Springboks Jersey. Maybe :) but yeah thing have been good here. Same old same old. Still excited to read your emails. They still make me smile big. Love you all. 

Dad, first, Joburg is an 11-12 hour drive from here. So most people fly. But tell Brother Glazier thanks for me too. That would be so cool. Part of me has looked around every corner to see if by chance there might be someone i know. Mission has made this world seem so much smaller. 

I am going to be talking this week, perks of a small branch in Africa, missionaries get to speak a lot. I will be talking about Elder Hales talk ... Preserving Agency and Protecting Religious Freedom. I hope it goes well. My studies have been pretty simple. One thing i want to do when i get home is take a study of the book of Mormon with the topic of Light. I read 1 Ne 17 and Nephi talked about how the Lord acted as there their. Something physical was given to them in their times of darkness. As so it can be with us. A physical source of light. A spiritual source of light to lead us in this ever darkening world. 

But the work is good here. I do like to the area alot. it is full of so much potential. I am excited to give my all here. A great place to have a final inning. To practice everything i have learned thus far. It should be fun. My comp and I are doing great. It is so much fun. 

But the family mission plan is what we are finding great strength in. It not only paves the way for people to join the church, but it also strengthens the members in their personal conversion. It will be great for this area. 

I am happy everyone is enjoying time with Grandma and Grandpa (here they call their grandparents Ouma and Oupa. I love the different cultures i find here.) . But i love you Dad. Have a great week.

Mom, i don't know who the girls remind me of?? :) but i think that we can tie it all back to our wonderful parents. Love you and thanks you for your great examples. You are the best Parents in the world. 

It is cool to hear the testimonies of those who are investigating the church. Those honest seekers of truth. They are truly looking and when they find the church you can tell, they can tell that they have been prepared for this gospel. Angels are preparing many for this great gospel, now we are in search for them. What a marvelous work and a wonder. 

No major stories this week. I have come to recognize that most of the time the Lord work many small and simple miracles in our lives. Tender mercies. Things that are almost unnoticeable. But His kind hand is there. Small little things happened this week. Like driving home with no problems. The simple lessons we had. It was just nice. I will try to get a good story for next week though.

Thanks Mom. Love you!!

Bryant, love you Elder. Keep working hard. Kia Kaha! Love ya!

Meagan, you are quite a busy girl. I am happy you enjoyed homecoming. I loved the school dances. They were great chances to hang with friends and have fun. I think if my memory serves me right, i went to my jr homecoming with Ashley Dearden. It was fun. But wow time flies. I know it flies even more when you are so involved in school just as you are. Keep working hard, but don't forget to sharpen your saw. You busy girl, you. You are growing up too fast. Slow down a little bit, will you?

I love you Megs!

Heidi, i hear you did great in the primary program. Way to go!! Also congrats on being Student of the month. You must be pretty brilliant. Keep working hard like your sister. She is a great example to me. You can learn a lot from her. And wow it is almost your birthday. Well happy early birthday. You are also growing up too fast. Love you Buddy!

Jera congrats on the triathlon. That must feel great. I did about 10-15 minutes of plyometrics from p90x it killed my legs. I really have to be doing more exercise. Especially with the little time left. 

I love the topic of grace. There are so many great talks about it. President Uchtdorfs was great. But Brad Wilcox had a great one called "his grace is sufficient" and Elder Bednar also had a great one, i think it was called " in the strength of the Lord." A great topic to study. 

And yes it is a crazy world we live in. There are too many funny characters out there. Oh politics. What a crazy world this is. 

We will have to talk sometime. But i love you Jera, have a great week.

Well thanks for the great emails. I love you all so very much. Hope you week is great, especially in the count down until Heidi's birthday. :)

Love, Elder Pennington

Sept 14th 2015

Hey you guys!!!!!

Another week has passed. Here on moment and gone the next. 

On my side the week was pretty slow. A normal mission week in George. On Friday we drove to Knysna, the closest two missionaries. The rest of my district, an hour away. Life is kind of nice here in exile. A chance to just buckle down and focus. A good chance to prove myself to myself. Other then that the week has been pretty slow. Pretty simple. Nothing too major. Next week will be the same. We will take to 4 hour drive again, to have zone conference in PE. That should be fun. Road trip :) 

Dad, covenants are pretty neat, they bind us closer to Heavenly Father, and they put us right next to Christ. Giving us the strength to do good. To become better. They refine us and mold us and make us.  The gospel is the best life insurance, it gives us the greatest peace in this life, a peace that comforts us through whatever might happen.

 

Sounds like a lot is going on over there. Thanks for your words of support and love. 

I have truly enjoyed learning more about and watching the Atonement at work. Seeing people change through Christ. Seeing my own change is a little harder, but i can see some of the growth. Mission has been quite to experience this far. I can't wait to see what else will happen. 

I love you Dad!

Mom, that is a funny meme. Mission will do that to you every now and again. It just wipes you out. 

But yeah Sundays are nice.  Sundays are our busiest days. Sounds like you had a great week. 

That cool about Nathan. I have a friend from Motherwell serving in Uganda. Elder Beja. Nathan is going to Africa Africa. Not south African tameness. Elder Beja this last week had a baptism planned and they had to cancel it because there was no water. His whole village had been without water for a week. Nathan is going to have a great African Mission adventure. He will love it. 

But the Ultimate Gift is a great movie, probably one of my favorites. 

With a mission branch there is not much more that i have to do. We just help out where we can. Which is nice. President wants us to strengthen the unit. Build the members, reactivate and such. So we focus on that, but we do have a couple of cool investigators. As well of some young investigator of people's kids. People who are making their way back and their kids are older than 8. So there is plenty to do. A nice small branch. About 60 people at church. Not too bad. It is just a mission branch because it is too far from a stake. So the mission supports it. 

But the area is nice a pretty. Nice people and everything. I will get some pictures soon. The weather is slowly getting hotter. Just slowly leaving behind the cold. But it isn't too bad right now. Today is a beautiful day. Nice warm breeze with a little cold. Just right. 

Mom, thanks for everything. I love you mom!!!

Bryant, love you too. I can't wait to share stories either. Someday soon. But it looks like we are on different side of the world yet having a similar time on mission. I hope you enjoy your branch with Elder George. It is pretty cool being in a small unit huh? I have been able to understand more how everything work in the church. Pretty cool to see more behind the scenes. Love you Brother

Meagan, i met a sisi (sister) the other day with your name. Even spelled the same way. Then she tried to convince us that it is pronounce meegan. Some people. I couldn't help but smile. 

But it looks like you are keeping busy. Working hard, playing hard at school. That is great. Just keep swimming. Love you Meegan :)

Bud, you are a very very busy busy little bee aren't you. Happy to hear you are enjoying things. Keep your head up and smile when those challenges come. There is a quote. "Don't tell God how big your mountain is, tell your mountain how big your God is" Heavenly Father loves you alot and wants to help you out. Trust Him. Keep up the great work. I love you Heidi!

Jera, love you too!!

Well sorry it is not jam packed with stories and jokes. But just another note. Last Saturday we got home and had no power. It wasn't load shedding or that we were out of units. But 🇿🇦 we just had no power. Slept without. Showered and got ready on Sunday without. Nothing for the whole. Day we tried getting a hold of the landlord, nothing from him. The senior couples didn't know what to do. Then our last visit yesterday was with a member family. We just mentioned to him. He took us to the electricity dept. Got a phone number. They came to the flat. Literally just flipped a switch and we had power again. There was a power box outside and something had just switched ours off. Small and simple things cause some great problems :) well i hope you enjoy your week. Love you all lots!

Love, Elder Pennington

Last week - Sept 7th 2015

Hey You Guys!

This has been quite the week. saying good-byes. Flying to PE. Driving 4 hours to George. Cleaning up the flat. So that it looks nice. But it has been a lot of fun getting to know this area. It seems like it will be a fun one. There are a lot of great members. I think I will enjoy my time here. But nothing too crazy has gone on this last week.

Dad, sounds like a lot of good things are going on over there. Lots of good. Just keep pushing hard.

i love you thoughts with Gideon. I have always enjoyed that story. Vigilant and ready for anything. I thought of this last week. The trust it takes to come to George. There has been some crazy stuff in the pass. It is far away from everyone and the like. Right now we don't even have a senior couple to help things run smooth. There is a little bit of fear in there. There is so much to do. Missionaries are a big part of the branch. But even their trust has been cut. But the last several elders have been building trust again and I get to mark it even stronger. It will be some good work. A chance to let faith grow a little more. 

For now I don.t need anything. I am doing good. Just learning my way around the area. Things are great. One of the priesthood holders in the branch is the branch president. And he reports right to president Merrill. President Moyo is a cool guy. He is a great one to lead the branch. 

Our focus is more reactivation. We will also be working on building the members so we will have the family mission plan provide some investigator along the way. George just needs to be strengthed. Big time.but that is about it for now. Lots of fun times ahead.

Love you Dad!

Mom, george is very nice. Very diverse as well. And it is quite crazy to think that this will be, more likely than not, my last area. It has a population of about 68,000. Then you have the surrounding areas as well. Thembulethu, 31,000. Pacltsdorp, 18,000. So there plenty of people to visit just here. Then our area expands and includes Wilderness, Mossellbaai, some ostrich place, and the little places inbetween . It is a big area. But it will be fun to get used to. Plus i will be able to visit Knysna. One of the most beautiful places in the mission. I drive along most of the garden route. One of the most beautiful drives in the world. I am one of the lucky ones. 

Thanks for the great picture. 

Oh and Happy Anniversary to you and Dad!

Love you Mom!!

Bryant, love you brother!

Meagan, thanks for keeping up with my facebook. You are the best. You can accept the friend requests. Or if you want you can tell me who is making the requests and i can approve. But whatever is easiest. I can always go through everyone when I get home. But thanks for doing that. 

I am sorry about the dance collision. It is all a part of the program :) just keep practicing and work hard and you will soon be dancing with the stars. :) 

But evrything is good one this side. Just loving the work. Good luck with the tests and homework. Your diligence will pay off soon. Love you sister!!

Heidi, sounds like you are having some fun as well. Camping and everything. 

And you are very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very good girl. Keep working hard in school. You are doing great. 

Also keep indexing. I won't be able to have a lot of time to do it here in George. Not like i was in the office. So now it is up to you and mom. Good luck! 

I love you Heidi!

Jera, i hope you are doing great. Have a wonderful week. Love you!

Well until next week. This is Elder Pennington the Elder signing out. I love and miss you all. 

Love, Elder Pennington

August 31st 2015

Hey You Guys,

This week was a little bit better. We had Bishop's funeral on Thursday. A lot of people showed up. It was a very special one. 

We also had some very good lessons talking about faith and trusting in God. How Heavenly Father wants us to give us and all of us. And He will make of us what He sees we can become. Along with this we had several good member lessons, working hard to get them excited and ready to work more with us. This also provided a way for me to say some good-byes. 

Because transfer news has come and I will be leaving the area. I am going to go back to the Port Elizabeth zone. But I will be in a place called George. Probably one of the most beautiful places in the mission. It is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours from Port Elizabeth. So this is going to be in the middle of nowhere. But I am excited for the work. It is a good area right now, but has some great potential. It is a mission branch. So it will be a new experience. I am very excited for this page of my mission. :)

PS; Try looking George up on Google maps. Walk down the streets. Also try Knysna. Knysna is probably a little prettier than George. We will travel there every other week. The other Elders in my district are there. So I get to experience that too. Should be fun!

But that is about it for now. 

Dad, I think about that sometimes. I look at my mission right now and imagine what would be different if I were in Botswana. I am grateful to be here in SACTM. It has been a proving ground for me. A good place of growth. I will talk about it more later but, I agree, this mission seems to be tailored just for me. The Lord works in mysterious ways.

Thanks for the list of people that have seen Christ before his life on Earth. That is so very cool. A great study. 

It is amazing how fast time flies. Winter is fading on this side of the world. Looking forward to summer now, It is going to get hot. Although I will be in the mountains I believe. So that will make it nice. But Cape Town is ending the winter strong with lots of rain. It will be hot one day and then rain for a couple and then be hot again. Crazy weather :) 

But hey, all is good right now for me. Just have to do some packing and then on Wednesday I will fly back to PE and then make the long drive to George. Should be fun!

I love you Dad!

Mom, Yup Transfers are here. I am excited. It was hard hearing of Bishop's passing. The ward is taking it one day at a time. I didn't get the chance to get to know him very well, because he has been in and out of Hospital ever since I got here. But I have learned a lot more about the Lord's grand plan. He knows exactly what He is doing. 

Also church was good. some good-byes. They are a good ward. I will miss it. But also they had 5th Sunday lesson about the Sabbath-day. And so the primary somehow got me and my comp to do singing time and sharing time. So we sang some songs and then played hangman. Let the kids out on time, but their parents got out 15 minute later... so for a little bit of time there was kid chaos. It was funny, they just scattered everywhere. But we got through it. 

Well I am happy to hear things are going great over there. Thanks for the great update. 

I love and miss you too. I love reading all of your letters. You are the best!

Love you!!

Bryant, Bedford. Bedford falls?? I don't know if you remember but Bedford falls is the name of the town in Its a Wonderful Life , Must be a connection. :) 

Oh yeah, My new comp it Elder Si'ufanua from Samoa (if I remember correctly). It will be a fun time with him. I am super excited. 

Love Ya Brother!

Meagan, Thanks for the Pics. You are quite to photographer.

The Struggle is real. We have very similar experiences with asking people to be baptized. We need to be direct other wise they don't know what is going on. I am happy the week turned out okay. Keep working hard. We are doing good on this side. All is moving forward. Just loving life. Well Sis, Love you!!

Heidi, Yoga! Cool. Yoga is great for you. I hope you like it. You will have to teach me some stuff. I am happy you have a good week. I will try and be better at taking pictures. Because it will be a beautiful place. Plenty of pic possibilities. 

Love You Heidi!

Jera, Mere Christianity is a great book. But Narnia is a pretty good movie and book as well. It has been long since I have seen it. 

Things are good, just slow. Over the last little bit we have been kind of cleaning up our teaching pool. Just some people don't want to take it seriously. They don't want to change and they don't see how much we want to help them. But hey, agency is important. Maybe one day. 

Thanks Jera, Love You!!

Well, It has been great to talk with you again. Love you ALL so VERY much! Hope you have a great week. 

Love, Elder Pennington

PSSSSSSSS. Did you know that the song above is in our hymn book? I found that one out this week. :)