January 18, 2016

Oh, great to hear from you.  This is my last mission email from Ghana.  Last week I was trying to send you email but the internet connection was very bad.  But I had a great time.  I went to visit my converts at Kaneshie, my first place to serve in Ghana.  I met my converts and had pictures with them.  When I was there in 2014 I started teaching one woman named Gloria.  She had a big issue with her husband.  We did our best to help them to stay together but the husband didn't really like us.  She wanted us to teach her so we kept visiting her.  Last week the members called her and she came.  It was great to see her.  She is going to be baptized this month.  The sad thing is she is divorced.  But she is happy though.  This week we had 3 baptisms so I'm happy that I will end my mission with baptism.  Johnson, Jessica and Seth.  Now they are members.  Baptized on Saturday and confirmed Sunday.  But I was in the Temple for the last time.  I don't know how long it will take me to attend again.  But I did for last time.  So last Saturday will be the last day.  They are going to close it for 2 weeks so they can clean and reopen.  Because of that I chose to miss the baptism but I was back for confirmation.  So I'm flying out Thursday.  Hope to be well with me when I go back.  I will do my best to get work as soon as I'm back but I must start school too.  I will really need your help.  You can send to me through Awash Bank.  You can facebook me the number.  Thank you so much for all things that you have done for me.  It means a lot to me.  I will keeep in touch.  I will get you an address too.  Hope everyone is doing great and happy.  My love to all.
Much love,
Elder Birrresa

January 4, 2016

Hello.  Hope everything is well.  Last week I was trying to make it work to email but I was out of time because of the Christmas and every member wants us to visit them so we haven't had time to email but today I just make it.  Today I went to my old area, the Liberian Camp.  It is outside of our zone.  I got to see my convert and members there.  Had a great time.  I only have 2 Sundays here in Ghana.  I just received a call from the office last week.  I was told I'm going home on the 20th of January.  I'm happy but I'm sad.  I'm going to miss Ghana but I will probably come back one day.  We are trying very hard to achieve our mission goal for the month of January and we will achieve it.  We have people that we are working with.  Lydia, she is 16 years old and stays just next to the chapel.  We are teaching her and we are trying to get her family as well.  And Johnson is an investigator who is investigating the church.  He has personal problems we are trying to help him so he can be baptized.  We had a small meeting with the branch leaders about him yesterday after church and we are going to prepare him for the 18th of January.  Both of them actually.  We have two PM, Jessica and Seth.  11 and 9 years old.  We are preparing them for the 18th of January.  So we are working with those people for this month.  We are working with RC to the temple.  We are done with one and we are working with others.  We are having LA coming to church so we are left with baptism to achieve.  We will do it.  I was sick because of the weather.  I got very bad yesterday and Saturday I was down but we went out to proselyte, just this my last time doing this as full-time missionary.  I must do my best to finish it strong.  Thanks again for everything that you have done for me.  It was great to hear from you...Happy New Year's.  Talk to you soon.
Much love,
Elder Birresa

December 21, 2015

We come late from apartment.  We have to fix our bicycle so we come late to the internet cafe.  We are having FHE with one of the pioneer.  Dr. Kissi.  I met him in the MTC.  He wrote one book called "Walking On The Sand".  He's writing another book.  They are editing it in Utah.  I will do my best to get that book and you will read it one day.  It is a really nice one on church life in Ghana.  Anyway it is really nice having family around and you have a big family.  I really love family.  I'm a family person.  That's all we have.  Just our family.  I'm glad that you all are having fun and a good time.  I'm just feeling the Christmas spirit that you all have there.  We had a great time.  We sang Christmas songs yesterday at church in local language.  Everyone is happy for that.  After church we met a few people for the first time.  We had 2 LA coming to church and 4 investigators coming to church.  2 came for the first time.  They are invited by members.  We are going to get to know them.  This week we are preparing for Christmas.  We are going to have an activity in our branch.  People are busy.  We have a family that we are working with but she is having a problem with keeping the commandment so she needs a small time.  We will work on that.  We have David and his sister Joyce.  We are teaching them lesson 2.  We invited them to church but they didn't come.  But we will try and work hard with them.  We have other people that we are working with too.  We have RC in our area.  She is very good.  We call her Grandma.  She is very kind to missionaries.  I had a chance to share my testimony yesterday.  I gave a small talk about the birth of our Savior.  I quoted from Isiah.  I really love that scripture and the words of King Benjamin from the Book of Mormon.  The greatest gift which is given to all of us is to save and redeem us from our Father, His only begotten Son in flesh.  I'm grateful for that and I'm happy that I know it for myself.  That He lives and He will come again.  Thank you so much for all things that you are doing for me.  I will talk to you all soon.  I would really love to talk with Emma and Lydia too...
Much love,
Elder Birresa

December 14, 2015

Great to hear from you again.  I love the movie Home Alone, a Christmas movie.  The snow looks cold though.  Anyways I wish you all the best one.  My new area is a rocky and dusty place.  It is really nice we have people that we are teaching even though I'm new to the area.  But it was good.  I'm finishing my companion's training so we leave the apartment at 5am.  Before lunch we don't do contacting, we just go and teach.  The weather is too hot.  Then we will come back for lunch.  We do contacting and teaching and visiting members.  We found really nice people that we are teaching.  David and Joyce, his sister.  We are teaching them.  Saturday we give service to our branch president.  We painted his house for him.  We had a great time doing that.  Yesterday was missionary Sunday.  We taught all things at church.  I taught Sunday School and Elders Quorum.  It was great.  The first class was the last chapter of New Testament and the second one was about missionary work.  It was great.  It is a newly opened branch.  They want to be a ward very soon.  We will do our best by working with them.  We are four missionaries in the same apartment.  We are having a great time.  Christmas is coming and we are preparing to have Carols again in the mall and for our Zone conference.  The time flies.  I'm almost done with my mission and am grateful to have you as mother, friend, and family.  Yes, I will be calling.  Should I call the same number that I called on Mother's Day?  It would be great to hear from Griffin too.  I was just talking to people back home and they told me there is a problem between government and people.  More than 60 people are killed by government force and they are students in Ethiopia.  Democracy is zero.  There is none.  You can't talk anything.  I personally hate politics because they will kill you so because of that just this year they had an election and they said they won by 100%, which is not true.  When you see the economy is growing fast but the gap between rich and poor is very high.  We will see what will happen but that makes me feel sad when the leaders do such things to their people.  I'm very sad to see people being killed everywhere.  Too sad.  We must pray to GOD to give us good leaders.  Thank you so much.
Much love,
Elder Birresa

November 16, 2015

Hope you all are doing good.  For me I'm just doing good.  We had a hard week.  We had program for our Mission President last Saturday.  It was good.  He's a very strong man.  It was somehow a boring week.  I'm having a hard time to sleep lately.  I'm not sleeping enough.  Just 4 to 5 hours.  I will stay awake in the midnight.  We had people that we are teaching.  We contacted 3 young men.  They are students.  Our first visit was wonderful.  We will hope to see them in this coming week.  So Christmas is almost here.  We are preparing to make a difference so will have Carols around our area.  Thanks for all things.  My hug to all.
Much love,
Elder Birresa

October 26, 2015

Great to hear from you again.  Yes, mission life is challenging lately.  Yes I was talking to president about that asking him why its making my time hard and he told me that he didn't put him with me just because he wanted to but he said that he knew I can take care of him more than anyone so he just told me to try my best to help him.  So this week we are okay but passing everything.  I hate living a fake life but no choice.  I'm living a fake life to make someone feel good and I'm okay if he will learn to humble himself and do his work.  We are having 2 baptisms this coming Saturday for Clement and Sister Ofori.  They are both PM with very active family.  They are going to have interview this Friday and will be baptized the next day.  Before that we have member devotional with Elder David A. Bednar.  It will be great to hear from him this coming Thursday.  We will take investigators with us so they can have a chance to hear from him as well.  Last when we are walking on the road to our apartment we meet very nice family who are very interested and want to learn with us even.  They asked us to come and visit them every Saturday.  They are happy family.  I can't wait to meet them again.  Yesterday was a nice day.  Had a great time at church.  8 people come to visit us.  3 of them are referrals to other missionaries but 5 are progressing.  We will look forward to seeing all of them in this coming week.  I don't want to give up on anything.  There is always tomorrow.  You can be better tomorrow if you are not today.  Just look forward to having fun and making my mission memorable, and going home with honor.  I really know for myself that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is for all mankind and He loves all of us.  He makes it possible for us to go back to our Father which is above.  I'm so grateful for the Atonement of our Savior and His love toward all of us.  For sure we will stay in touch.  We are family.  Thank you so much for all things.
Much love,
Elder Birresa

October 19, 2015

Yes it is challenging.  Guess what?  We are at mission house.  We had a really hard time last night.  We fight.  I don't want to but he tried to bite and punch me on the face but he missed me so I have to punch him back and I did it.  The other missionaries come and helped to hold him back.  He is not humble.  He don't want you to tell him anything.  But I can't live a fake life.  If I need to tell him I will.  I will keep telling him.  I promise I'm not bad and I will get along with everyone.  So we meet with the mission president just now and he talked to us.  Now my companion is with the mission doctor.  He needs help.  The transfer is just last week and President wants me to stay with him for small time.  Again it wouldn't be hard for me to stay with him.  I will change my ways and try to help him.  But we had a great week.  We received 3 referrals.  Two of them come to church.   Actually we taught 2 of them.  The other one is from TOGO.  He's a French man.  He stays in sister's area and was referred to us from a member.  We try to pass to sisters but the member said to teach him and he will go to their branch when it is time for him to be baptized.  We can give to sisters so they can baptize him.  I don't know it wouldn't work but we will talk to president about that.  Even before we go back to apartment.  But it is great thing we are having people to teach for the next month.  My companion is from South Africa.  Yes, I do have a lot of friends that are Muslims.  I really enjoy being around them.  Our culture is very similar to each other.  It is not hard for me but it is hard to teach Muslim people but I enjoy their companionship.  Yes I did have a Muslim girlfriend.  Yes she is married now.  I will probably date Muslim again when I go home and convert her maybe.  It is really good to hear that Rachel is married now.  With the oldest dress.  I think that is good idea to pass the dress to generations.  Back home if you go to wedding or hear wedding you will say this word.  Let me say it in Amhric first.  YE ABRAHAME EN YE SARA GABECHA YE HUNELACHU.  Hope you will manage to read my Amhric.  Let me interpret to English.  I'm wishing for their life to be like Abraham and Sara.  Will you forward to them for me?  Say it in Amhric to them.  It wouldn't be hard!!  Thank you so much for all thing.  Wish great time and week.  Please I miss Emma and Lydia.  Please give my hug to them and tell them my much love for them.
Much love
Elder Birresa