Berry, Conner T

This has been the week of lasts: last interview with the Mission President, last exchange, last time attending church in England, last times I see friends I've made, etc. But it has been such an honor to serve the Lord for the past 2 years. He knew I loved it so much he gave me a whole 11 extra days to be a missionary (I was set apart on the 20th of June 2021 and I am released on July 1st, 2023)! Speaking of running though, Elder Silva and I did a 10K today to help me practice for the Fireball on the 4th shortly after I get back. It was challenging but definitely fun. I find it difficult to put into words the way I feel about my mission and how I can express the gratitude and magnitude towards its effect on me. This past Sunday, the Stake President of the Canterbury Stake pulled me aside for a few minutes and shared his appreciation to me for my service and help in the Stake. It was super nice of him. One thing he said though was that it's okay to not exactly know how to put in...

Hope everyone is doing well. Things have been good this week. Our newest members brought a friend to church on Sunday who is interested. They have the Gospel fire of testimony burning bright for sure. We had some good finding sessions and started teaching some really cool people. I love being a missionary, and it's honestly such a privilege. We had a game night where we played a burrito card game that involves Burrito Brawls, Wars, and Duals. It's like "Spoons" for those who know that game, but it involves plush toy burritos and throwing them at each other. Whoever made this game is a genius. Have a great week. "If the world would follow the principles of the gospel proclaimed by Christ, a real peace, beyond the cessation of hostilities, would come to all people, for he said, 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.'" (John 14:27) - Howard W. Hunter

This week has been good. We had an awesome zone conference, and 6 things are moving forward in our area. We had to stop teaching a few of our friends that we have been meeting with for a while, but they know they can always reach out to us when they are ready to learn more. This Sunday was a Special Stake Conference (we already had a stake conference like 8 weeks ago), and big changes were announced. Basically, the entire stake we were in got absorbed into the surrounding stakes and is no more. So for Elder Silva and me, we joined the Canterbury Stake and have a new District, District Leader, and Zone, Zone Leaders, etc. So we said goodbye at a District Lunch today and then went further into Central London to go see an Uncle of Elder Silva and his family. We had a second lunch with them and then went to the Imperial War Museum, which was one of my favorites. While we were waiting for the train, we received disappointing news that our newest members, Nammy and Lorna, wouldn't be abl...

Good morning/afternoon/evening! The past two weeks have been great! This Sunday, our friends Nammy and Lorna were baptized. Just before Nammy sank below the water, a 5-year-old kid got up and yelled, "JOHN CENA!" and boom! She was in and out of the water. It was not expected at all, and I had to try really hard to contain myself from exploding in laughter. But it definitely made it memorable for everyone. Someone pointed out that John Cena has the same initials as Jesus Christ (JC), so the child must have been inspired or something. Other than that, we are just seeing miracles in finding and meeting new and incredible people to teach. The ward members have been amazing, and they help us out so much. Hope you all have a good week!

One of my favorite words I find commonly used among the African community is "Godwilling." I love it. Things are going well. I've been lousy at taking pictures, so I do apologize, but this week has been a good one! We put four of our friends on date for baptism this June, and we're really excited for each of them! Godwilling, everything should go well. Every day I wake up thinking about how I don't have much time left, and it fuels me to do my best and work my hardest. I've been sleeping well the past week. God is good, and I love the Gospel! Have a great week. Here's a cool quote I found related to The Gospel of John 17:3 (The Lord's Intercessory Prayer): "It is one thing to know about God and another to know him. We know about him when we learn that he is a personal being in whose image man is created; when we learn that the Son is in the express image of his Father’s person; when we learn that both the Father and the Son possess certain specifi...

I'm doing well! It's been a good few weeks. Nothing too crazy happening. We're having some good activities now where members and friends are coming, and our ward started a new Sunday School class for new members and friends, which is great. We had exchanges with the ZL's and taught some good lessons this week. Of course, there was the coronation, which was rather interesting to watch. We have gone to some museums and parks on our P-days. 1 Nephi 19:9 "And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore, they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men." Take care!