A Day of Dedication to Remember

That little white spot is finally and officially filled. The Church has both presence and the land is dedicated.  Those of you following this adventure have read of the gradual unfolding of the Church here in Burundi. Now as of Oct 19th the land is officially dedicated to the preaching of the gospel. Elder Jeffery R. Holland and Elder Steven Snow, in a whirlwind visit stood with a small handful of missionaries and the local group leader and his wife at the site of the Burundian monument to unity on a prominent hill overlooking the city of Bujumbura nestled on the shores of the beautiful Lake Tanganyika. There in the shadow of the prominent University of the Saint Esprit on the hill above the monument, they united in a dedicatory prayer to implore the Lord's influence and power upon this little war-torn country that currently enjoys a season of peace. 

Prior to the dedicatory prayer Elder Snow spoke to us, especially the missionaries about the role and importance of an apostle of God. He bore a powerful testimony of Elder Holland's call from The Savior. Elder Holland then spoke to especially to the missionaries about the purpose of dedications. 

He explained to us that only apostles can dedicate a country; that It is by this that the destiny of the people is turned over to the Lord; That anymore than Joseph Smith could have understood the Lord's intentions and purposes as he walked from the grove of trees, neither can we understand what the Lord will do here; That it is difficult to imagine an entire country of priesthood holders with faithful families but that is what is going to happen. He emphasized that were it left up to us it wouldn't happen, we are not that good. He helped us see that  when we officially ask the Lord as in a dedication, when we turn our lives over to Him and ask to be used as His instruments then the miracles occur.  He underlined that it is an incredible responsibility, we have to do this right.  And then along with the responsibility come the immense personal privileges!

The prayer will be published in the Church News and Liahona/Ensign soon. This writing and the news, however can never capture the power of the Spirit that we felt. After the dedication there was a wonderful meeting for members and investigators. President Packer, Elder Snow, and then Elder Holland spoke. We only had a handful of members, even rare for the dedication of a new country but the room was full of investigators, some coming from as far as 90 miles away... (and none have cars).

Waiting for the meeting to begin... investigators filled the room.

Elder Holland with investigators from miles away

He explained to them that they will have to spend the rest of their life, just as he and Elder Snow, learning about the church.

He clarified that the journey isn’t over when you are baptized. It is just beginning.

He admonished them to read and study their scriptures.  That they would need to learn all they can.

He directed them to listen and learn and study with the missionaries.

He explained that  baptism is a covenant and asked them if they knew what a covenant is?  He answered his own question by explaining that a covenant is a promise;  in this case, it is promise to God.  He helped them see when they are baptized, they promise to keep His commandments, that baptism is the start of a life time of keeping commandments. 

Elder Holland with Pastors Methode and Moise

Be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great.      DC 64:33

The Tide is Rolling In-Hope is Alive

Sadly, the children are the great tragedy of Africa. There are many who have no family. AIDS and other diseases have left large numbers of children to be taken care of by other family members or to fend for themselves. Some families are just too poor to send their children to school. These children work at jobs that are never going to help them to progress, learn & grow.

These boys sell hard boiled eggs on the streets and the young boy in the corner on the right sells black plastic sacks at the marche.

 

This little girl is selling popcorn and sugar cane. This cute boy works in our yard every day. Look at his clever lawn watering system.

 

These children are selling small piles of charcoal, which is the major source of cooking fuel here.

Sometimes the circumstances of these innocent little people are the hardest things to see and it's hard to imagine what the future holds for them.

 

But then there was Sunday in Bujumbura. Family including children flocked to our little meeting hall. Our beginning meeting three weeks ago included all those from little cities up to 90 miles away. There were 70 to inaugurate our little chapel. The wall came down and the space was doubled two weeks later. 

Those two Sundays found half the original number. We began to realize that to start a Bujumbura branch would take more than just opening the door. Those far away could not afford to keep coming in spite of their new found hope and faith.

  

Pastor Johnson and Frere Malabi-Group Leader

Then Pastor Johnson responded to our call and humbly came with some of those he had shepherded for years in reading and learning from the Book of Mormon. He had been a former revolutionary fighting along side those that now serve in the government. He is a former university teacher, business executive, and politician. But after having been saved multiple times from death he decided to keep a boyhood promise made as an orphan whose prayers were answered in such a miraculous timing and manner as to allow him to stay in school and survive the lonely and war torn culture. 

With his following the chapel was filled with almost 80 people. Not only Pastor Johnson's flock but others with whom we had shared the message of the restoration while shopping for groceries, buying insurance, etc. Several cousins of a Burundian convert living in Hawaii with whom we had been corresponding finally came as well as the money changer from the night before, the taxi driver, and others we didn't even know that the missionaries had found. 

This was the first meeting we needed to translate into Kirundi. Janet spoke on the role of women. An embassy employee played a flute medley of Hymns and the former clerk of the old Bujumbura branch of 92 spoke of the history of the Church in this country between 92 and 96. He spoke of the devastating effects of the war and some of the personal losses he suffered: a grade school son burned alive by insurgents as his school was torched, his wife dying from grief, etc. and the hope his faith has given him to endure until now as the Church returns.

He found boxes of old books in the old meeting hall and brought them Sunday along with his  twenty something son who is now meeting with the missionaries.








This next Sunday should be our first baptisms... if we can just find some place without crocodiles and hippos.

 

 

The children of Africa tug at our heartstrings every day. They are, in general, gentle, well-behaved little people. The young are the hope of the future and we see it in their sweet, shining faces. They are filled with light and promise and are a joy to watch.
 Some of the little ones cry when they see us and won't get too close to us scary, ghost-looking, white folks, but we still love seeing them and trying to make friends with them. These are the faces of some of the little people in the church in the Congo and Burundi.

    

The lucky children go to school. They have double sessions with half days morning and afternoon. Sometimes they have to walk a long way to a school. They come in their uniforms and are serious students. Parents pay tuition for school at great sacrifice and are also serious about their children's education, if they can afford to send them.

The gospel holds such promise in helping them become dependable, independent, and interdependent...though some may sleep through it all for the moment...

 

As with so many things in the Congo and Burundi, there's a long way to go. But the faces of children in the church give us hope for a better, brighter future for them and their home lands.

There is hope for this new generation as the gospel gives eternal perspective, encouragement and a scaffolding upon which to build a mortal future as well as the promises of eternity that ignite hope and lead to happiness -

Bows, Holes, and Arches

    Life here is often changed by the weather. The temperature is only one factor. The humidity and rain combine to affect the COMFORT factor. That middle column says that the next couple of months are high discomfort times. 

    This week we even experienced our first rain in Africa since our arrival. The plush greenery comes with a price and consequence...mosquitoes. The mission office manager just came down with malaria. We asked one of the local stake presidents about living with malaria. He quipped, "Oh, that is normal, I have had it five times." They just take medication and go to bed. Few have air conditioning... we found out what that is like when the power went out for 26 hours. We tried to sleep with the all the windows open with screens (poorly fitted) in place. By morning we had experienced a swarm of biting midges, hungry mosquitoes, and a          
 plethora of sweat. This badge of survival was the result of one one hour session studying when the power was out-it

a larger one in captivity

was an attack of a swarm of miniature flies called midges - the next day they looked worse with white rings around them and a deeep itch that lasted a day longer.

But with the rain comes the beauty... which will be our focus for the next six months of this special rainy season. That will make for a different Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, President's day, Valentines and Easter!!



And with one bow comes another...an arch as our little meeting room develops into a chapel:

From a capacity for 45















To a capacity for 100 and with overflow in the kitchen and halls 130-150.  How long will that take we wonder?

et Voila! New tile and curtains are next week!

Today's sacrament meeting was attended by 35 people which included 19 members and missionaries. The rest were investigators, many repeat. Frere Malabi organized and conducted the meeting. Elder Tshituka spoke on Joshua 24 choose ye this day...how to choose...if ye love me keep my commandments...which commandments?..the greatest=love God and love each other. Frere Malabi followed since Isadore (one of the oldest members) who accepted to speak was out of country. He spoke on the two great commandments. The two talks really meshed well together.
     In attendance was our cab driver, or should I say former cab driver since we now have our white toyota trucks. Also the office manager with the ministry of the interior with whom I spoke for an hour while waiting for Elder Jameson. He was very set in his intellectualizing of religion until he found out we were not paid, nor were there professional clergy.  It took me a while to remember who he was...very sharp. I hope the spirit touched him deeply.

     After the meeting we met with two pastors from Uvira in the east Congo to teach and give perspective for their 800 people just waiting for the gospel. With them was a woman From Baraka-Fizi, who spoke in Swahili telling us about how she and about twenty others were meeting for prayer to know what church to follow. During their prayer she saw a man descend who then wrote for her the name of a church they should follow.
They tried to organize their own church and call it by the name the angel gave them: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But the little organization failed so they prayed again. This time she was told that someone would come to teach them about the church and whites would be involved. Two days later Pastor Methode, with whom I had been corresponding for three months came to their little group and taught them about the Book of Mormon and "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." They were stunned and excited. Then came President Headlee last December then we followed in August.

They are anxious for us to come but with the distance they will have to wait a while.  All in all the Spirit was powerful, those in attendance stayed around for an hour while others with whom we met for two.



The work, like the weather enters a new season that brings growth and beauty...

oh ya, the mosquitoes and midges...As we hung the sign with the name of the Church on it this morning a man stopped and asked what it was. I explained that we weren't Catholic or Protestant but we were Christian. He asked if we were JW. I said no we were Christians with new scripture, The Book of Mormon... he panicked and almost ran saying no, no not me, not me. I think he heard Muslim (they are growing in the city) The missionaries have been harassed a bit too. The bites itch but go away but the rain keeps nourishing.

Isaiah 55:10-12

10 For as the ^arain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and^bbread to the eater:

  11 So shall my ^aword be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

  12 For ye shall go out with ^ajoy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the ^btrees of the field shall clap their hands.