State of the Mission - Report at the Half-way Mark
What do you know about Grandpa and Grandma's Mission to the West Indies? We have now been gone for over 18 months. In a few days it will have been 19 months.
Each of the 5 J's has been to the West Indies to visit - Jamie has come twice. Each of the grandchildren except Julia and Rachel have visited us. We are counting on seeing them this Fall.
The mission is very spread out. It includes St. Maarten in the north, then Guadeloupe, Martinique (French Islands); then St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Grenada, and Trinidad & Tobago as English-speaking islands; and finally the three countries in South America that do not have a stake or a temple - French Guiana (French-speaking), Suriname (Dutch-speaking), and Guyana (English-speaking.
Every six weeks grandma and grandpa travel to Suriname, Guyana, St. Lucia, Guadeloupe for zone conferences in addition to the one they host in the mission home in Trinidad. They also try to visit each country every four months where zone conferences are not held because grandpa needs to meet with members for interviews for temple recommends and other critical member needs.
When grandpa and grandma arrived, the mission baptized about 40 people each month. The following month they were challenged by Elder Mickelsen of the Seventy to help realize the prophecy of President Hinckley that the mission could double its baptisms. In December 2006 the missionaries rallied and baptized 111 people. In July of 2007, they had another push and baptized 107 people. They had wanted a white Christmas that Christmas and had one. Then they wanted a Christmas in July and reached that goal. As the year progressed, the Elders felt that they could get 104 baptisms per month beginning in September and reach 1000 baptisms in 2007. Well in September, October and November the mission did not reach 100 per month, but in December 2007 they baptized 175 souls bringing the total baptisms in 2007 to 1021. This was followed up with 115 baptisms in January of 2008, which is where we are today.
Some of the highlight missionary memories for grandpa include challenging Brother Ningwah in Curepe last December to get baptized. He had been dragging his feet and thought mistakenly that the baptism interview was some type of test to see how much of the discussions he remembered. Grandpa gave him a sample of the interview and read him the scripture Mosiah 18:10 "if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abudndantly upon you?" The following Saturday, grandpa was able to drive Brother Ningwah to the beach where he was baptized in Trinidad. (Las Cuevas).
In the country of Guyana, grandpa and grandma were invited to come teach with Elders Webb and Nielsen. While teaching, the challenge for baptism was given to this family of 8 and several of the family accepted and were baptized the following weekend.
Another great experience for grandpa occurred last October when grandpa and grandma were attending Church in Chaguanas. Grandpa asked Brother Gopaul Sr. why he was not baptized and then challenged him to get baptized that month. Brother Gropaul fasted and prayed and was baptized. Grandpa and grandma and Elder Johnson of the Seventy were in attendance for the baptism.
As you remember, two of grandma and grandpa's missionaries were lost on Mount Pele for three days and nights. After anxiously searching for the elders and after the prayers and fasting of members throughout the world, the elders were found by a Hindu farmer who had dreamed that he would find them. The scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants, 123:17 summarized the experience: "Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."
During grandma and grandpa's travels they have meet member after member who was led to the Church by dreams. One example of this was in Tobago with the experience of Sister Williams, who was baptized last weekend. She had a dream in which she saw two missionaries standing in front of a building. Inside the building was a woman dressed in white teaching other women about what they needed to do in their lives to be able to be dressed in white. In her dream, Sister Williams asked some people in the street about the two missionaries and was told that they represented the Church of the Mormons. About a month later, Sister Williams saw the two missionaries from her dream standing by a bridge in Tobago. She was driving her sister home, so she slowed down her car and asked the missionaries who they were. They responded they were missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She said that she was looking for some missionaries from the Church of Mormons. The elders said that would be them. She was very excited and told them to wait right there and drove off. Not knowing if she would return, the elders continued on their way. Well, Sister Williams rushed back to the spot by the bridge where the missionaries had been and they were gone. She drove around Tobago looking for them and found them. They taught her the lessons and grandpa and grandpa attended her baptism in the sea by Grafton Bay in Tobago a week ago Saturday.
Grandma had a interesting experience in Curepe a couple of weeks before the Tobago experience where a sister who had been confirmed the week before told her that in relief society she thought she was having a heart attack. She rushed to the hospital after relief society, not wanting to be rude, and was hooked up to an EKG. While she was in the waiting room praying fervently that she was not dying, other people there asked her to pray for them. She was found to be perfectly normal and realized she had been feeling the Holy Ghost.
Today, in Trinidad grandpa and grandma had another very memorable experience. Grandpa had asked the Quorum of the Twelve for permission to combine the two districts in Trinidad and make one district. To have a stake, you must have the district look and feel like a stake for one year. 475 people came to the District Conference where grandma and grandpa spoke. Prior to the conference, they held a training session for 182 people. This is the highest number of people attending a conference in Trinidad in its history. For an intermediate hymn, grandpa had all the return missionaries and existing missionaries come to the front of the chapel and stand with the choir as it sang "Called to Serve." For the second verse, the chorister invited all the members to stand after being asked by grandpa to do so, and they joined in the singing. There was not a dry eye in sight as together the latter-day saints of Trinidad worshipped and prepared for their soon to be stake.
This has been a peak at grandpa and grandma's mission? Why not test yourself in seeing if you remember a few of the highlights shared?
Sample Discussion:
1. Who found those lost missionaries and what happened to him the night before he found the elders?
2. What was it that the lady in Curepe was feeling when she thought she was having a heart-attack?
3. Who did Sister Williams in Tobago see in her dream and what were they doing?
4. Who else had a vision when he was 14 years old and wanted to know what Church was true?
5. How many people were baptized in the West Indies in 2007? Is this higher than the 601 who were baptized in 2006?
6. How long have grandpa and grandma been living in the West Indies? Can you name some of the countries they visit regularly?
