Joy in Missionary Service

                We started to settle back into our regular routine of missionary work after some pretty exciting adventures. We have a solid group of soldiers who gather for FHE each Monday evening. They held the fort together while we were away and were happy to learn more about how being united in their faith in Jesus Christ can bind their families together even when they seem worlds apart.

                Our mentors at the USO were happy to have some day help to free them up to do fundraising and arrange activities in the satellite field posts. On Tuesday, I left Wayne at the USO desk to run some errands we had planned to do together after our shift. We felt crunched for time so I went alone. As I started out of the commissary, I recognized Sister Dale who had come with her husband to church the first week in January and we haven’t seen or heard from them since. I greeted her and she stopped to visit for a while. I knew the timing of this temporal errand had been prompted by the Lord.

My next errand was to the Post Exchange and there, at almost 2 pm, was the Sanchik family eating lunch together. I’ve been doing my best to follow on their well-being since Sister Sanchik had a baby boy five weeks early on Thursday. I knew the baby had some concerns early and the delivery was C-section. I was able to talk with Brenda, see pictures of the newborn, and learn of his continued progress. They were happy to know of our love and prayers on their behalf. The Lord is able to do His own work, and sometimes he uses senior missionaries.

The elders and I met twice with my neighbor, Victoria. She shared her story with us and a very personal, sacred experience after the death of her husband. She was only thirty-four. She chronicled her search for truth and her first encounter with The Book of Mormon. She was reluctant to read it but unable to find answers to her questions elsewhere. As she read a little at a time, she began to be drawn to the book until she came to know that it was the word of God, the answer to her searching. She has read and marked it and prayed. She has read the Gospel Essentials Manual, Doctrine & Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price. Her top question is, “What do I need to do to be baptized.” The elders have started presenting the five lessons and she has a baptism goal date. She even fasted today.

Assisting in the teaching of Victoria with her limited English has required me to call down the gift of tongues and the elders to help translate. I have used my Korean in ways I didn’t think I knew how. I even bore a simple testimony in Korean today in our fast and testimony meeting. It wasn’t perfect, but the faces of the Koreans was like seeing a host of cheerleaders celebrating an impending win.

We held a fast and testimony meeting on post for one soldier this afternoon, but the rest of us who were there were the beneficiaries of the wonderful spirit that fills those tiny meetings. Tender feelings of the heart are easily shared in the company of those who understand and appreciate deep spiritual experiences. I don’t think they charge enough for the joy and blessings associated with being an emissary for Jesus Christ.

Wayne and I were able to take the train to Seoul to attend the temple on Saturday. I learned the answer to a question I have puzzled over for years as I sat through the instruction. The instruction was still the same, but my eyes were opened to see what I hadn’t seen before. It was so plain that I was amazed that it had eluded me for so long. The temple truly is a house of learning, a house of prayer, a house of worship. We were able to teach the Temple Preparation class to four members of our branch today. It is wonderful to see so many of them eager to take this next step in their conversion. Three of them look forward to being sealed to their spouse and family.

The exciting news this week was the mission call to Charlotte, NC, to our granddaughter, Kara Atkisson. We trace my Taylor ancestors to North Carolina so in a way she is being called to share the gospel in a place where she has roots. Some of the people she encounters may well be cousins. We know she will grow as she experiences the joy of being God’s missionary.