Riley in Africa : I'm glad I'm getting paid enough for this

Often times, even when everything is going as well as it could be and I’m working hard, life here is still difficult. And in these moments, I have the habit of saying “I’m glad I’m getting paid enough for this.” I know there are a lot of blessings, but it’s not always easy. Like for instance I woke up on Saturday with an incredible pain in my left leg in the joint on my hip. It was incredibly painful to move and to walk. I don’t know what was wrong but I knew it hurt. I don’t like being a wimp so I decided to suffer through the pain and go out to the sector anyway. I looked like I had been in a bad accident with my limp but I was able to work hard anyway; I feel fine now. And even at this instant, I’m writing this email, I have a swarm of mosquitos constantly biting my legs. The lord must be preparing me for something with all this opposition.

Benin is progressing. We were able to see yet another one of our investigator couples get married, Brother and Sister Houssou. They had the wedding planned for Saturday. However, someone in the family found out about the wedding and was not happy and threated to come and destroy the wedding with voodoo or something making everyone scared. So, we switched the wedding to Friday at a different location and the marriage was accomplished just fine. So, we will now finish the teachings and baptize yet another couple. I’m so happy.

We did not end up getting any pictures of us with the couple on my camera but we got one with one of their daughters. And we were in the background of some of the wedding pictures. We didn’t know we were in the background. I think they are funny so I’ll put them in.

Every three months in Benin we have to go to the immigration building and renew our visas. I have done that process a ton of times, but this week was my last visa renewal. The visa I got will last me till the end of my mission. I’m also the missionary on this mission with the most time logged in Benin out of all the other missionaries. I’m the most true Benin boy.

We have a super cool investigator named Victory. He is a student at a school established by a Canadian member of the church. So, the school has an institute of religion class and he signed up for it and became super interested in the message and lives in our sector. He has come to church quite a few times and is very smart. He speaks fluent French and English, kinda like me. We have to make a big sacrifice to see him in the mornings before he goes to school, but he is progressing towards his baptism too. He is one of the first investigators I’ve had that has actually read the brochures and the Book of Mormon.

So that was my week for the most part. I’m also in the missionary choir preparing for a visit of the area 70 who is coming, so that is fun to sing still. Okay that’s all.