I'm Thankful for the Atonement November 30 2015

hey family! 

so this week was good. it was probably the fastest week of my mission. so fast. i cant believe its monday again. this next week will go even faster. we are going to kumasi again for leadership council. also, i withdrew some money for ties. i ordered some from the member who makes them. ill get them this week and send some pics. i got ten. and still have money left over for some things maybe in kumasi. this week was awesome though. 

Thanksgiving Feast: fried rice, packaged tuna, mashed potatoes & treats!

Thanksgiving Dinner (I'm in front of the window, my comp to the left)

we got to teach a lot. we were able to meet with a lot of really cool people. some of which we really feel are prepared to receive the gospel. of course the gospel is for everyone, but some people just accept it and act on it so quickly. some of the lessons went relly well. especially with a lady named kate. and some didnt go so well. sometimes the people of ghana just want to talk about where you are from. what you're doing. if you're going to marry. if so, would you ever marry a ghanaian. haha stuff like that. i love it though. i thought about home a lot this week. not in a bad way. just that i would be coming home sometime kinda soon. i cant believe my mission will be over. mission sometimes feels like it will be forever. i am not done learning yet!

This is the coolest security guard in the world. He goes by stone boy.

one thing that was especially cool. i realized a lot about the atonement. about how Jesus Christ was the only one who could go through that experience. it was already something i knew. i just more internalized it. i was reading about how he inherited mortality from his mother and immortality from heavenly father. he had power to give up his life. no normal person could do this. just really cool. i also realized, i'll have no time for video games and things like that when i get back. there are so many things i want to do. ive really thought a lot this week about life. i love it. its so short. it feels so long sometimes though. i just want to be a better person. its seriously hard to change some habits though.

the pics you sent were awesome! kenna got married! crazy. haha its cool though. i am excited to get home and date. itll be so fun. i cant believe christmas is almost here! december starts tomorrow! we are hoping to skype. i really hope we can. we asked again if we could skype at this certain cafe and they said they have working cameras and mikes. so we hope itll work well. anyway. i dont really have a ton to say this week. it was good though! i hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving. i love you all so much!

elder madsen

Real turkeys for the holiday

I'm Thankful November 23 2015

hey fam!

techiman is so sweet. mom we do see over the missionaries in the zone. to answer your question from last time, we are so busy in that we are delivering supplies, traveling to kumasi, doing a ton with reimbursement, helping the sisters with....like everything. its awesome though! i love it. and we still teach a ton. i know i have said this before, but ill say it again. i feel like i am at a high point in my mission. im happy. i also feel a lot closer to the savior. i have done a ton of reflecting. looking at my life and the blessings i have. and i love the work more and more each day. i honestly love helping people see the truth. apostacy is so apparent. its incredible how it works. from our side its so easy to see, and from their side, its just confusing. its sad. each area i get called to i know its where i am supposed to be. and right now in my life, i know im supposed to be here. there is a scripture in doctrine and covenants that has become one of my favorites. its section 100 vs 4-6. its really helped me see this is where im supposed to be. not anywhere else. lately ive been trying to memorize scriptures that i think are really cool. its sweet. its definitely something i would recommend to the family. maybe as a fam you can do one a week. something that will help you.

this week we are going to enjoy like crazy (for thanksgiving). there is a way good fried rice place. we will buy a ton and there is a shop that sells snickers and other candy. elder snow, one of my past comps (now a district leader here) wants to have a huge thanksgiving lunch. its going to be awesome.

we do have some awesome investigators right now. techiman has been struggling a little. but we have recently found some people that are really prepared. we hope they will be baptized within the next couple weeks. this week im grateful for you family. thanks for being here for me and always supporting me. love you all! oh and dad. we have been using the gospel art book with kids and with older people that cant understand english very well. its awesome. they love it!

Love elder madsen

Doctrine & covenants 100:4-6

4 Therefore, I, the Lord, have suffered you to come unto this place; for thus it was expedient in me for the salvation of souls.

 5 Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men;

6 For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say.

Work First, Me Second November 16 2015

hey family! 

wow your week sounded awesome. i love hearing about everything you do. sunday dinners...cant wait. dad ill make sure to study that scripture well. and mom elder botha and i get along great. he is super funny and WORKS HARD. i love it. i feel that being here right now is exactly what i need. i have not been this tired my whole mission. sometimes we get home and i barely have time to eat and shower before i go to bed. we are just doing stuff all the time. i want to develop this attribute of working hard. no matter what, just getting the task at hand done. 

and there was another thought that came to mind. one of the nights i was wanting to get home faster and just have some personal time, and it seemed like time was just going so slow. but the thought that came to mind was that if i make teaching my priority (which, obviously it should be) that the little things i want to do wont seem as important. i came out here for a specific reason. and now i just try to have the work first, and me second. its something i hope i can keep my whole life. and of course having time to yourself is incredibly important. but at the right times. i think my mind is just fighting a huge battle of laziness. trying to get over habits ive developed. 

also! i was thinking about a lesson i want to have with the family when i get home. i was thinking about how satan works. i want to be able to discuss how satan makes good seem evil and evil seem good. look at "what does it really teach?" analyze movies and media. see what the message is. i think about what the savior would watch and listen to. its just a thought i had. well this cafe doesnt have working usb ports so no pics. sorry sorry sorry. this past week was so good though and this next week will be just as good. time is starting to fly. i cant believe we are already halfway through november. anyway. i love you all so much. have an amazing week! 
elder madsen

My Birthday in My New Area November 9 2015

hey family! 

so dad. i actually heard about that this past week (the controversy around the church policy for same gender families & their children). kinda crazy news. to be honest, i feel like there is just more and more darkness entering the world even among members. its scary. meeting with an investigator here, he made it seem like faith was foolishness, that we need facts to believe something. i was thinking, if this man in ghana believes this way, imagine what its like back home. i'm scared for members of the church. mainly my fam. but because we have you as the leader of our family im not as worried. the world is just getting sad.

this week looked fun though! ha i miss hunting. momo good job with the scholarships and the driving. thats awesome. tenny im glad you had a good week and i love your news article in my package! and ya momma i got the package and love it. i especially loved how you drew little faces on the treats. ha thats my momma! love you! and dad congrats with the article, i read it and i think its awesome. just so you know i withdrew money today. my shoes that i "fixed" arent doing too well. so i just bought some. and i have seen some white shirts so ill be able to get some. just let me know how much i have in there because its kinda hard for me to tell. 

so this week was good! we went to leadership council over my birthday. for some reason though i got incredibly sick the day we went to kumasi. i had runny tummy like crazy, i threw up a lil and i was shivering more than i ever have in ghana. it wasnt fun. the day of leadership council was good though. i received and opened my package the day of my birthday. we are going back to kumasi this wednesday for zone leader training. itll be fun! my new area is awesome. the branch is kinda small but thats why we are here! we'll work hard. my comp is named elder Botha. he is from south africa. he's a really cool guy. he works hard and is an awesome teacher, i'll learn a lot from him. one thing im kinda stressing about, i dont know what to get all of you as gifts from africa. there isnt really a place in techiman that sells cool things. ill be sad if i cant get all of you something. two things ive noticed about being a zl that i actually really like. we are busy allll the time. this past week has been so tiring, and awesome. being able to help serve the members of the zone is nice. kinda stressful. but its cool because nothing is about you, its all about them. its really cold here. no more heated shower :( thats the only sad part. but the night time is cold, so thats nice. i have to wear the sheet over my whole body. i love not sweating at night. i feel like its preparing me for home ;). so that was my week! i love you all so much!

elder madsen

*this is a ps from elder madsen's mom: it's awesome the weather is cooler for him, the highs are almost 90, lows are right around 70, but the humidity is 90%. And that's cold to him ;)

Transfer to Techiman November 2 2015

good morning fam! 

so dad they do not celebrate halloween here. sadly. but we still dressed up. ill try to send pics next week. i loved all of the pictures and i loved hearing how the week was. momo i think it would be awesome for you to get into boxing and i am super excited about your job. tenny keep up the good work with school and i love the costume! everyone looked so good. 

i have some news too. president called me on friday. it was at about 10 pm so i was kinda nervous as to why he was calling. one of our ap's is going home a little early for school so they needed to call one of the zone leaders to replace him. and then they needed to call someone to replace that zone leader. so i was called to go on early transfer to techiman and be a zone leader! im actually here now. it was so fast. transfers arent even for another week and a half. so today i woke up at 4 and rode by myself to techiman. its about four hours away. im super excited to serve here and i feel i am ready for the leadership position. i know heavenly father will help me to magnify it and i am just really excited. my zone is awesome. the two district leaders are both past companions of mine. i am pretty sure i'll finish my mission here. telling all of the families in tamale goodbye was so hard. i love them so much and i'll miss them like crazy. its a ton cooler here. ive been to this apt before when we came down for mission tour and things. its so crazy. it doesnt even feel real because of how fast it happened. elder hepworth is kinda scared to get a new comp. but he'll be fine. 

Here are some pics from a group activity with the senior missionary couple, the Brinks. 

Elder Morford & Elder Madsen

im not really sure what i'll do for my bday. ill let you know what happens. dad i do feel old. old in age. but not really in body and mind. its weird to think that i spent my whole 21st year on my mission. its awesome. i'll get some new shirts this week! they are cheap here. i also really dont want you spending more money on me. i'll miss tamale. it feels right to be going now though. ive spent about 7 and a half months there. and only five transfers left. thats insane. it'll fly bye. love you!

elder madsen

and family thanks for the kind words. i love you all so much! miss you like crazy. christmas will be here before we know it.