Can Elder Warr WakaWaka!
Tembisa Ward Members at the YSA Fireside
Watkins, Tembisa Elders Quorum Presidency and Warrs go visiting in the township.
Fun after church
Part of the Keyboarding class
What a gap: April 11 to June 18…I guess you could say we have been here long enough to get pretty well into things. We’re finding our way around and driving on the left, and preparing for winter instead of summer right now feels somewhat natural. We’ve experienced a couple of Braai’s (barbecues) and learned that we have a geyser (pronounced geezer which is the water heater) in our flat.
The big excitement in South Africa is the World Cup starting in two weeks. They are closing schools for 5 weeks and making all kinds of plans. For example we understand the country is hiring 50,000 extra police and security. We’re not sure where they are getting them from or how they’re training them. Security for visitors is a big concern. Lynn will surely sneak in a few games on TV, especially the opening game of the US and England.
Lynn has found a substitute for racquetball. It’s called Squash. The game has some similarities to racquetball in that there are four walls and you score about the same. The racket handle is longer, the strings are smaller, the squash ball doesn’t bounce nearly as much so you have to move quickly, the court is bigger, you have to hit the ball above a line on the front wall that is about a foot above the floor, and you can’t play off the ceiling. Anyway, he’s plays once or twice a week with some guys at the area office. Sorry to say, Debi has taken no pictures, since this all takes place prior to 6 am. Lynn says he is winning some games with the younger guys…again no witness, but he is a missionary!
Sometimes we wonder if we are doing enough, but as we try and relate the highlights of the past month or so, we find there is a lot to share, so we’ll just touch on a few things. About a month ago we started visiting less active people in the Tembisa Township. It’s quite an eye opener to go into some of the homes and to see the neighborhoods. Most of the homes are nicer, but smaller, 600 or so square feet and have electricity. However, some are shanties without power and water. Our hearts go out to these people. Many are unemployed and do not have a lot to do. The children play mostly in the street. One family we visited consisted of the grandmother, daughter, grandson. This dear sister was delighted to see us and explained how she hasn’t been feeling well. She said she would come to Church and she has each week since we visited her. She has a limp in her leg so it is hard for her to get around. Well, she walks about a mile or two to get to Church.(Most of the people walk to Church). What faith and love of the gospel she has shown. In our last testimony meeting, we were so impressed with the testimonies of the youth and young adults. They gave sweet powerful testimonies of the gospel. There were probably 10 youth and 5-6 young adults who bore their testimony.
Just to give you a feel for how things are, let me summarize a couple of conversations that were in priesthood meeting recently. First, the bishop announced a stake priesthood meeting during the week and was encouraging the members to go to the stake center. Well here is the challenge: they need to pay the equivalent of $4-5 for transport to the stake center. This would be like asking the priesthood members in Highland to pay about $20 to go to a similar meeting. Also, it takes about an hour to get to the meeting. Eleven young men and about 7-8 young adult men went to the meeting. My how these young people are devoted to the Gospel! On another Sunday they reviewed Elder Ballard’s talk to the fathers and sons that he gave last October. If you can recall, it was a great message counseling fathers to listen to their sons and for sons to share with their Dads. During the discussion a question was asked what you do if you never see your father or he is otherwise not involved with you. When asked how many young men and single adults fit this situation, about ¾ of them raised their hand. We find this is typical in most of Africa. Many of the generation of middle aged men died due to Aids or are simply not involved with the family. We have a tremendous respect for these people’s faith and testimony. We work in the temple every Saturday morning. How wonderful it is to work with these people!
We went to our first Braai in the township about a month ago. It was in honor of the temple missionary couple who has been going to Church with us. It was at the bishop’s home. The bishop’s home is probably one of the better homes in the area. It looks nice and is well furnished. It has electricity, water, etc. We were amazed at how gracious this family is and how they have opened up their home to others. They have 3 children living with them, but have taken in three other children who have either lost or been abandoned by their parents. You could just feel the love in their home. For dinner they barbecued some Worts which are like Brats strung together in links. They looked like coiled snakes on the barbecue. They served a bean dish and melee, which is a corn based product which is most of the people’s staple. They melee looked like mashed potatoes, but it sticks together more. They told us that they eat without utensils. At first, we thought they were teasing, but found out it was true. They first brought around a pan of water to wash our hands in. (Yes, we all washed in the same water). Then you use the melee to pick up the beans or pieces of Wort. They gave is spoons, which we used a little, but we had to try it with our hands. One of the men said he prefers to eat with his hands because he has a closer experience with his food. (??) It was so nice to be in their home. We felt like we learned so much about the culture of the people.
On other fronts, we’re having some very interesting assignments. Lynn is trying to figure out how to simplify using Internet technology in all the meetinghouses for training meetings and other stake meetings. There is Internet here, but it is not as reliable and costs more. Securing equipment and cabling is a challenge. Also, the area presidency is asking us to look at DR Congo in addition to South Africa. The Church is growing so much in DR Congo (The mission averages about 200 baptisms a month), but the infrastructure is much worse than South Africa. There are a number of ad hoc congregations in DR Congo just waiting for the missionaries. Use of technology will help the work a lot and make it so more members can participate more in stake and other meetings. So we’re sure there is a way to make this happen, we just have to figure it out.
Debi is working on the Area Church website and with family services. We got the new website launched a couple of weeks ago. Debi serves as the content editor. The address is www.lds.co.za if you’d like to take a look. We’re both working on a training program on counseling for Bishops and Branch Presidents.
Last Sunday Debi gave a 1-hour fireside talk to about 250 young single adult women. It was well received, and the Lord certainly magnified the effort! Debi also is accompanying in Sacrament meeting and teaching keyboard lessons each Sunday to about 10 students. Lynn is providing some assistance. He’s sure glad he started taking piano lessons last June.
We love talking with the people we meet. They love to joke and tease and are so friendly. Our missionary tag is like a magnet. Lynn is working with one of the security guards at the apartment building. He has a Book of Mormon and is a spiritual man. He always asks about the Church. We’re going to connect him with someone who attends a ward close by. Debi had an interesting experience in the grocery store. She kept seeing this lady at various places in the store. Finally the lady came up to her and pointed to her tag and said would you pray with me. Well, Debi visited with her and told her about the Church and the Temple. The lady said she wanted to come to Church and gave Debi her name and phone number. We’ll see what happens.
Well, as you can see, it’s hard to keep this very short. Be assured we can witness without a doubt that this is the work of the Lord. This is his True Church and we love being able to be involved in some small way. We also note that this work is more difficult than we ever thought it would be, but are so blessed.
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