Elder Phillips in Africa
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Je suis un yovo

8/25/2015

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Bonjour ma famille!

So, where to start? Our layover in Paris was cool. We couldn’t see anything from the airport, but I think I saw the city and maybe the Eiffel Tower as our plane was landing. The airport was super cool. Unfortunately, it had a lot of shops and advertisements for fashion and alcohol; go figure. :)  I bought some macarons, and they are delicious! Also, since we were in white shirts and ties with name-tags, people in the airport thought we were airport workers and kept asking us where things were. We tried our best to explain we weren’t airport workers, but also help where we could. We arrived in Cotonou safe and sound and spent the night at the mission home. President and Sister Morin are awesome! They are very quiet and soft spoken, but they are really sharp. When President Morin gave us a presentation of the mission rules, he walked us through different scenarios we might face and what would be the best way to proceed.

The language is probably my biggest struggle right now. That, and I'm still shaking out the jet lag. Anywho, the language is an obstacle. I can understand my companion and Elder Destribois, but most of the time I can't understand African French. I'm speaking okay though. They asked me to give my testimony in sacrament meeting, and that went well. Comprehension is the  hardest thing, but line upon line, right?

My new companion is Elder Hansen! He’s American, and he’s been out for about a year now. He’s super nice and patient, and has been the best teacher I could have asked for. The President told me that he struggled a lot with the language at first, but then really dug down to work and mastered the language! 

Now, for the part you've all been waiting for... AFRICA!!!! 

Africa is incredible. It continues to just blow my mind every minute. It's nothing like what I've imagined. I'm currently serving in Akpakpa, a subdivision of Cotonou. It's very urbanized, but Africa just the same. The city has got this look and feel that's indescribable. It's like a mix between Adventureland and a city from the Bourne films, peppered with tin huts everywhere. The smell, depending on where you are, is like bread, sweat, charcoal, and occasionally caca. There's quite a bit of poverty here, but it actually isn't too shocking to me, so far I've kind of just taken it in stride. I've already forgotten what houses look like in America. The people are by far my favorite part of Akpakpa. They might seem intimidating at first, but if you wave and say Bonjour, they crack into the most genuine smile you've ever seen and wave right back. Even if they don't want to talk to you, they still listen to what you have to say.

The children are absolutely adorable. When you walk by, they all sing this nursery rhyme: "Yovo yovo; bonsoir, ca va bien? Bien, et vous?" Yovo is their native word for white man, so it translates to "Whitey whitey, good nightey, how are you? Good, and you?" I love it! It's so fun to wave back and smile at them. One time I responded "Yovo?" and then looked down at my skin and exclaimed "Quoi? Je suis un yovo! Comment?" and they got a good laugh out of that. Other times I'll dance along as they sing, and that really gets them laughing. If you know how ridiculous I look when I dance, then you can guess how much it makes African children laugh. They also just love to touch white people, so on my first night in the area, there was a group of kids that just mobbed us with hugs and high fives. Whenever you give a kid a high five, they freak out and think it's the coolest thing ever.

My favorite family to teach is Soeur Christine's family. Soeur Christine is a single mom who was baptized in April, and is one of the strongest members in the branch. She wanted her children to be baptized as well, but she wanted them to do it for themselves, so she had the missionaries work with each of her kids individually, one by one, one at a time. Right now we're working with David, the last one who wants to get baptized, and he's just understanding everything, it's awesome. Christine's grandson, Nathan, is probably my favorite kid to teach here. He's a year or two younger than Adam, and he loves the missionaries. Whenever he sees us, he runs up to us, and holds our hand as we walk. That'll boost your self confidence any day. 

Christianity is a very marketed religion here. You may think that to be a little irreverent word choice, but I have never seen so many signs for so many different churches anywhere in the world. Thank heavens for missionaries. Our church has chosen the most individual, genuine way to tell people about the Gospel.

Also, side note, there are as many hair salons here as there are churches. Funny thing is, there are more hairdressers that have the words "God" or "Jesus" in the title than the churches. Animals roam free here. There are no lanes or lines on the roads, and only the main streets have cobblestones, everything else is dirt. There are a bajillion motorbikes here. In terms of food, we cook all our meals, and they all have rice, salsa, and some kind of meat in them, because that's the cheapest to buy. There's only one temperature of water. We sleep in mosquito nets, and wake up right as the Muslims are finishing their morning prayers over the loudspeakers, so it's nice to know that there are other people praying to God that early, just in a different way. Church here is awesome! It's cheaper to rent out a two story building here than to build one, so the church rents out this cool building with tiles and columns. I love it. The branch has about twenty or thirty people in it, and about five or six of those are investigators who regularly come.

Sunday afternoon, two appointments in a row fell through, so we decided to go contacting. Our numbers were a little low this week because training took up a lot of time, so we were kind of tired and discouraged, when out of the blue, a woman asked to meet with us this week. Then, Elder Hansen, saw this baby playing in the mud, so he pulled him out and handed him to his mom. A man down the street saw this, thought it was cool that we stopped to help, and also asked to meet with us. Then, another man walked up to us and asked if we could meet with him. In a total of fifteen minutes, three people had contacted us, not the other way around. Even for Africa, that's rare. I guess someone is looking out for us. :)  So, in all, I love Africa! I feel so at home here, and every moment I walk these streets just takes my breath away. It's hard, but boy do I love it here.

Avec un beaucoup d'amour,
Elder Phillips

P.S. The computer here doesn’t like my SD card reader, and I don't have my camera cord on me, so pictures will have to wait for next week. So sorry.  Also, power outages are daily here, and connection is slow, and the keyboard is hard to use, so if I don’t send an email one week, I am probably alive, its just that I wont be able to reach you that week.
P.S.S One thing I forgot to mention hand-washing laundry is super relaxing.

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Email from Mission President

8/20/2015

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Picture
We are very delighted to inform you about the arrival of your son Elder Phillips to the mission field. Elder Phillips is very enthusiastic about the work and he shows much desire to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. He will be serving in Benin with Elder Hansen from the United States. Elder Hansen is an exemplary missionary and will be the best companion to help Elder Phillips adapt to full time missionary life.

You will find as an attached file a photo of Elder Phillips with my wife and myself.  We are grateful in advance for the help and support that you will offer him throughout his entire mission.

Yours Sincerely,
President and Sister Morin
Benin Cotonou Mission.


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Waka Waka

8/17/2015

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Bonjour ma famille!

Surprise! We get a short chance to email home today, because of travel plans tomorrow. Today is almost like a mini PDay.

So, here's the update:
This week has been so cool as we all get ready to leave. We're all just in awe of how close we are to hitting the field.

We had In-Field Orientation on Thursday, which is a day-long activity for departing missionaries where we learn about the Doctrine of Christ, Finding People, and Member-Missionary Work! It was soooo very cool, and it just gets you pumped about getting into the field.

Side note: huge shout-out to my MTC teachers Frere Pehrson and Soeur Johns. They are so very awesome. I'm inspired by them every day, and they're amazing French teachers. They have such a deep love of the Gospel and so many cool miracle stories from their missions.

Saturday, Frere Pehrson had us write down our goals for our first 6 weeks and our first year (based on key indicators), and so that was such an awesome experience. For one key indicator goal, I felt impressed to set a certain number. I wrote that number down, and then I really started to think about that number. It was a very high goal. If you know me, you know that sometimes I can be very naive, and so I was really examining myself to see if this goal was realistic, or just me being naive again. And then, I asked the question "Do I have faith that the Lord can do this?" and the answer was Yes! When missionaries reach goals, it's not about what they cannot do, it's about what the Lord can do. When I set that goal, I felt legitimate faith (not naivety) that, with the power of the Lord, I could accomplish that goal in a year. It was such a cool experience.

Sunday was so awesome. It was my last sacrament meeting in America, so that was super cool. I really enjoyed hearing a member of our branch presidency speak in English, because I think that'll be the last English sacrament talk I'll hear for two years. Wow.
We did our last Temple Walk that afternoon, and that was so awesome as well.

Our final Sunday devotional was: the Nashville Tribute Band!!!
They were such a legit band. They sung a lot of popular songs off their albums (they started out with "Children Go Where I Send Thee," and it's even funnier in real life). It was like a concert setup, mixed with a devotional, so it was definitely the most unique devotional I've ever been to. Since we were in the choir, we got to sing a couple numbers with them. "I Was Born" was the first one, and the second one we sung with them was called "John's Song" (it's a song with a lot of Gospel influence). Believe me, there is nothing cooler than the Nashville Tribute Band, backed up by a choir one thousand strong, singing a Southern Gospel song in the MTC assembly hall.

Elder Critchlow, our district leader, is from Nashville, and so the lead singer lives in his ward, so we got to go up and chat with him (the lead singer) for a bit afterwards. He's a legit dude, he's got a solid testimony. And he served in the Las Vegas Mission, Dad!

That evening we watched "Character of Christ" again, and I got even more out of it the second time. One interesting thing is that our district has heard Mosiah 3:19 over and over and over again while at the MTC, from different speakers and teachers. And we noticed it in Character of Christ again. I finally think I understand it now. The scripture says "The natural man is an enemy to God...unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man". The natural man is supposed to put off the natural man. So, in order to become a saint, you must put yourself off. Don't say "My will be done," say "Thy will be done".

That evening I also gave my first Priesthood blessing. It was a blessing of comfort and counsel, and it just brought the spirit into the room immediately. It's so cool how, when you give a blessing, the Spirit just brings words to your mind. I definitely felt a lot of the Spirit that evening.

Well, this is my final day in America. I love you all very much, and I'll keep y'all updated as much as I can.

The MTC has been probably the greatest experience so far in my life. How the MTC goes for you is largely based on your attitude. Your attitude doesn't make it any easier, but you'll enjoy it a lot more if you're not wishing for it to be over with.

You'll meet a few natural men at the MTC, but you'll also meet a lot more saints. I prefer to hang out with the saints. And, if you're open enough to people correcting you, even if you think you're right, you'll get a lot of hypocrisy rooted out of you. Still a long way to go for me (a LONG way to go), and a lot of work to do, but man, am I grateful for the Provo MTC.

I love you all. Savor America for me! Pray that traveling will go well and that Elder Herring and I, and our district, may arrive safely in our missions and be ready to get to work. My next email will come from Africa!!!

Avec un beaucoup d'amour,
Elder Phillips

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Soon, But Not Yet (Goodbye to America)

8/12/2015

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Bonjour ma famille et mes amis,

So, drum-roll please: our guest speaker last Tuesday was none other than:....President Russell M. Nelson!

It was by far the coolest devotional we've had. It was his first speaking engagement as President of the Twelve. It was a worldwide broadcast to all the MTCs in the world, and because I was in the choir, I had a few camera shots focus on my face during our musical number. It felt awesome to be a Mormon celebrity for two minutes. I also happened to notice that my cheeks have gotten really chubby. (:

One thing that was awesome about the devotional was the aura that just surrounded President Nelson. About fifteen minutes before the devotional, everyone in the assembly hall was just chatting and talking normally, waiting for the devotional to start, and all of a sudden everyone went dead silent. We hadn't seen anything out of the ordinary, there was just this sudden density of feeling in the air, and we all felt and knew that President Nelson had just walked into the building. That was the most reverent I've ever seen missionaries become. He didn't even walk into the assembly hall for another five minutes, but we all just knew that he was here.

It was so interesting to see him in person. To me, he looked even more young and spry than he has in the past. He seemed very lively, and in no way did he look like he was going on 91. Old yes, but not 90.

Sister Nelson spoke first, and she talked about how we are not just a Utah church, we are an eternal church. If we were just a Utah church, then Moses, Elias, and Elijah would not have come and given keys to the gathering of Israel, the sealing of families, and saving ordinances for the dead.

President Nelson built off of that talk, discussing the threefold mission of the Church, which ties to those three keys that Moses, Elias, and Elijah restored. If we are to be great missionaries, we must be "epistles of the Lord". In order to do so, we must have the Doctrine of Christ (not the doctrines of Christ) engraven on our hearts. Discussing this, he kind of just looked at the camera with this grin and said "I've engraved my initials on a lot of hearts". At first everyone was thinking "Wow, President Nelson was a player," so the joke got a few half-laughs, and then two seconds later we all realized that he was a heart surgeon for a living, so he was talking very literally. We all just burst out laughing!

President Nelson gave us an apostle's perspective on the age change for missionaries. He said that the Twelve had no idea how to work out the specifics of the age change, but they had faith in the Lord. They knew that, from the Lord's perspective, more youth would be engaged in missionary work, and that more young people would be endowed earlier. He also talked about becoming President of the Quorum. He said that President Packer and Elder Perry weren't dead, but just merely transferred to another area. He said that we should be grateful we don't have some kind of deliberation or election for who should be the next President of the Quorum, and to be grateful for how we leave that calling up to the Lord. He said it is the most peaceful way to have those kinds of transitions in the Church...unless you're the one getting called. (:

I just have such a testimony of how President Nelson, and the other Apostles, and President Monson and the First Presidency are all called and ordained of God to be His representatives on the earth. They hold the keys to our church, and as times will continue to get more and more confusing, on a global and personal level, they will have the words of wisdom and the Lord. I hope each of you will thoroughly study the words of the living prophets and apply them deeply into your lives.

In terms of MTC in general, I'm doing well. I'm sorry I haven't gotten that package home yet, this week was very intense and exhausting for me. I've been trying all week to get it put together, but every time I sit down to pack, I either fall asleep, or someone needs my help. No worries, though, I'll get that in the mail today.

Me and Elder Herring got our travel plans yesterday.  Getting our travel plans has made me really realize that I'm leaving America for two whole years. It's finally starting to hit me hard that I'm leaving a whole continent behind. It's definitely making me think about the differences between here and there, and what I'm leaving behind. I'm not homesick, but I'm definitely thinking a lot about how different of a world I'm about to enter. I had a lot of honest questions about how I'm going to handle living in a third-world country halfway across the globe, for two years.

This morning, me and Elder Herring went to our probably last temple trip for two years. We went to the Celestial Room, and we sat there and were just in awe of how we'd never be in a celestial room for two years. It really got to me, you know?

Then, as we walked out the temple doors, the sun had just risen, and so all of Utah valley was just in front of us. The LaVell Edwards Stadium was directly in front of us, with the big BYU logo on top. As I saw the big "Y," I realized how very...detached I felt from everything. At night, before bed, the thought would sometimes pop up about what life after the mission would be like. I love BYU, and I know it's the school for me, but when I saw the stadium, for some reason I just felt disconnected from it. That was the biggest comfort in the world. I could almost hear myself saying "Soon, but not yet". I just felt completely unattached to the places outside of the MTC. I sure do miss the people I love, and I'm excited to see where you all go in these next two years, but I feel absolutely comfortable leaving everything behind for two years. Yes, Africa still feels daunting, but I feel ready to just jump in. I want to jump in. And in two years, then I'll jump into BYU and friends and dating and jobs and such, but as a church we believe in baptism by immersion, and I think the same symbolism applies to our life in general: just dunk yourself completely into your current season of life. Be where you are.

So, to my friends and family, I would give you this piece of advice: center your lives on the Doctrine of Christ, and just jump into the life that's waiting for you. Go to high school, go to college, do your very best, go on dates, get married, go on missions, preach the Gospel, and be kind to all you see and meet. Love everyone around you, including yourself. Be humble, but be bold. Open up your heart to the blessings and opportunities ahead of you, and jump in. Don't worry about me. Definitely update me on what happens though: I'd love to know how the first day of school went, the dates y'all go on, when y'all get your mission calls, and I'd love to help out the best I can when you are having difficulties. But don't worry about me. Live the fullest life you can. Be where you are, and just immerse yourself into the time in which you are asked to live now.

I love you all so very much, and I wish you the very best. Do well and do good,

Avec un beaucoup d'amour,
Elder Phillips

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Lessons Learned from the Provo MTC

8/5/2015

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It was so good to keep getting letters and packages from y'all. I love you all so very much.  Happy Birthday Mom! You are the best! I love you so very much, and as the days go by I'm more and more proud of my awesome mother, and I'm extremely grateful for everything you've done for me and taught me.  Tonight, our devotional speaker is a very important person. I don't think I should say who it is yet, for security reasons, but I promise to tell you all about it next week, alongside some other experiences I haven't mentioned yet.  Because next week's email is reserved for those experiences, I wanted to spend this email on the lessons I've learned at the MTC. This is my second to last PDay in America, so this is my last chance to send this email.

I'd like to share some lessons I've learned, alongside lessons my fellow missionaries have learned:
1. A kidney stone is the worst experience ever. An elder in our district is currently in the process of trying to pass a kidney stone, and has been diagnosed with it for about a week now. He is absolutely rock solid tough in dealing with it. I got sick again this week (same as last week, just flu symptoms), but I didn't come even close to the discomfort this elder has been feeling. There's always someone having it worse than you, so don't complain.
2. Always eat food before Lortab. The elder with the kidney stone is on Lortab now, so that's what he recommends.
3. Don't eat too much food. You can get fat off of MTC food, so watch yourself. But don't get caught up in a health frenzy. Treat yourself, enjoy the food. It's all about finding a healthy balance.
4. If you want a free laxative, drink the orange juice.
5. Always relate what you have learned back to the investigators and their needs.
6. P-Day naps are the best.
7. Don't do language study during personal study.
8. I absolutely love my family. I haven't been homesick, but I sure do recognize how very awesome my family is. I love you all so very much.
9. Write in your journal or write poetry to de-stress at the end of the day.
10. Learn how to get to know other people.
11. Don't flirt. Elder Woo's rules for interacting with sister missionaries are as follows: when you must talk to them, speak towards the air around their general direction, and speak as meanly as possible so they know you aren't interested. You cannot look at them, but if you must face them, keep your hand (or other protective barrier) over your eyes (glasses or windows will suffice). (: Seriously though, don't flirt. It makes everyone groan on the inside.
12. Be emotionally open, but not emotionally dramatic. At this point, I'd like to say: Sorry Mom and Dad for not being as emotionally open to you both during high school. I now know how y'all felt when I would keep my emotions to myself. I promise that when I come back I will always be emotionally open with you.
13. Always listen to the Spirit. Sometimes it's hard to discern what the Spirit is saying. I've learned that oftentimes when we feel the Spirit we don't even recognize it as a prompting. It just seems like the consequence of being a good person and making good choices. Be a good person and make good choices, and the Spirit will be behind the scenes working miracles. If you have time, look up the story of Elder Packer and Elder Bednar and the 20-marc note.
14. It's important to have companionship unity. When you are on the same page, your lessons are amazing.
15. Don't rush lessons. Speak slowly, let the Spirit guide your speech.
16. Prayer and fasting have real power, and with faith your requests will be answered in the Lord's way.
17. The fifteen minutes of quiet time before bed are your personal appointment with the Lord. Don't be late to that appointment.
18. You and your investigators have to know the doctrine and principles before they can apply them to your lives.
19. Tell the investigator why you're here.
20. You're a representative of Jesus Christ. So act like Him.
21. Live the laws of sacrifice and consecration.
22. As perfect as you may think you are, you'll never be as perfect as the Savior. Or Elder Menzel (German elder in our zone. Seriously, he is flawless).
23. Make people laugh in a good way. This week, we got two new roommates in our room, both going to Lansing, Michigan. I had the ingenious idea to turn on my very convincing British accent and tell them I was from London. I kept this up for four days. Naturally, it was perhaps the greatest joke I've ever been a part of. I played the part very convincingly. Don't bully people or do pranks at the MTC, but there are plenty of healthy opportunities to laugh along the way.
24. The saddest sound you will ever hear is a suitcase rolling down the residence hallway, followed by someone shouting "I'm going home! I'm done with all this crap." No one in our district or zone has left. I didn't even know the missionary, I didn't even see him walking out, but it was the most heart-wrenching thing ever.
25. Don't expect mail to come, and you'll always be overly joyful when it does come.
26. Give it all to Him.
27. Keep phone out of your pocket at least a week before you leave for the MTC.
28. Be not afraid.
29. In the two years you're gone, your friends may all move on, and everything you know might disappear. You will miss out on many opportunities. But the opportunities the Lord will give you are always greater than the opportunities you give up in His name.
30. There is always someone to teach, and someone to learn from.
31. Use your talents.
32. Love one another. Be kind to all.
33. Intelligent humor is more powerful and healthy than loud laughter and potty humor.
34. Be exactly obedient, but don't be a Nazi. Understand why the rules exist, keep them all, but don't let them take away from your personality.
35. Take time to sharpen the saw.
36. Patience is key.
37. The language will come, little by little, with time, study, and faith.
38. The power of the Priesthood is real.
39. The Church is true.
40. Have a knowledge that God loves me and you.
41. This is the Missionary Training Center, not the Missionary Be Perfect and Show Off How Awesome You Are Center. It is great to be prepared, but don't for a minute assume that because you are prepared that you are too great for all of the lessons you can learn here. Even if you are learning something you already know, learn it again. You come here to train and learn, not to already be the perfect missionary.
42. You will never be a perfect missionary. But you can be a good missionary. Even better, you can be the perfect missionary for the specific assignment the Lord has for you.
43. Exercise and gym time is for having fun and relaxing, not for showing off. If you take gym time seriously, you're going to get shown up by someone who is better than you, and you make it less fun for everyone around you.
44. Learn to laugh and shrug it off.
45. There is a time and season for everything. Be where you are, and live in the season you are currently in.
46. Everyone has their agency. You can't make anyone follow the rules, it is a conscious choice to be obedient.
47. Don't give up on yourself
48. Don't be a hypocrite

Sunday evening, we had Sheri Dew as a devotional speaker. She was awesome! She is so very educated and sharp. Is it okay if I have a slight crush on her? (; These are the most important lessons I learned/re-learned from that devotional, applied to my experiences here:
49. "There are divine laws that govern access to heaven, and when you covenant with God, He teaches you how to open the windows of heaven"-Sheri Dew.
50. Angels walk the halls of the MTC. Live in such a way that they feel invited, welcome, and comfortable in the room.
51. The Holy Ghost is real. The two greatest experiences you can have at the MTC are these: when you feel the Spirit 24/7, and when you look back at your life and realize that the Holy Ghost had always been there right alongside you.
52. Jesus is the Christ, and oh how I love my Savior.

There are plenty of others I have learned, but these are all that come to mind right now.
I wish you all the very best, and I love you all so very much.

Avec beaucoup d'amour,
Elder Phillips

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    Author

    Elder Brian Phillips
    Benin Cotonou Mission
    July 2015 - 2017

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