Elder Bednar's Visit - Before and After

Elder Bednar is the youngest in age of the Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is a great occasion for an apostle to visit and he was scheduled to meet with the Kinshasa Missionaries Monday November 4th. There was a lot to do to get the meetings scheduled but much was needed to be done to spiff-up the buildings and grounds.

Crispin is responsible for cleaning the S&I building where we work, so for several days before the apostle's arrival he was putting in the hours. Mark and I were given the task of making sure that the refrigerator was clean so it could be used for the food that would be served at a luncheon just before the meeting with the missionaries.

Some of the local leadership had traveled to Lumbumbashi - a Southeast city where Elder Bednar was also visiting before coming here. Word was sent to the local leaders telling them to do more than a surface clean. SO we had armies of workers in our building re-staining doors, painting walls, replacing tile in some rooms, just about anything you could think of was attended to.

The wall around this property which will also be used for the Kinshasa Temple sometime in the near future was less than inviting with the rivulets of black mold making it look well like the Congo. The Thursday before the Apostle's visit they started painting the outside of the wall. We almost missed the driveway because we didn't recognize that it was the same place where we work. When we left the office on Friday nothing had been done on the interior of the same wall but Monday when we arrived it too had been painted and they were painting the eves of the S&I building.

 

President and Sister Cook asked the Senior Missionaries to help with the luncheon for Elder Bednar his wife and four or six other authorities that were with him. Sister Cook prepared all of food and we helped her set the tables and serve the food. It was a wonderful experience for us to help and we also had an opportunity to greet and shake hands with the authorities. 

 

The group of visitors went to the chapel next door to our office to meet and teach the missionaries. We were able to join them there and to listen to the message from Elder Bednar.

After Elder Bednar left, the Missionaries sang the hymn "Called to Serve" en Français for President and Sister Cook, our mission president and his wife.

We have had days of rain and more rain. Mark was able to photograph a double rainbow when we were taking a walk around 5:30 PM. The storms stir up the air and it is possible to see the sky and the clouds accompanying the storm which made quite a spectacular sunset.

I wanted to share the birthday song sung in French and Lingala by some in our office and others in the S & I group with Hermes leading when we celebrated my birthday. Lingala is a tribal language that most of these men and women learn in their homes. Sometimes they speak using  French, Lingala and English in the same sentence.

Elder Bednar and his wife, President Cook and his wife as well as two security people and one videographer flew to Gabon to dedicate the country for missionary work. Recently the Church was granted official status to function within their boundaries. President Cook described that as a most sacred occasion with twelve people attending in an arboretum under a tree that is 150 years old and massive. Torrential rains fell the night before and into the morning but cleared somewhat. As they gathered for the dedication Elder Bednar explained to the Botanist and the gardener that he is a special witness of Jesus Christ to all the earth, here to dedicate the country for the preaching of His Gospel. The men remained reverently in proximity to witness the event. As he began the prayer, sunlight shined on him and the air was filled with butterflies. The Church will be assigning missionaries to work in that country in the immediate future.

President and Sister Cook returned to Kinshasa with Elder Michael Moody and his wife who are serving in Gabon but needed to leave the country in order to renew their visas. They were here in Kinshasa for a week and they were able to attend our Kinshasa Stake Conference last Sunday before leaving to return to Gabon on Wednesday. 

Elder Michael Moody and his wife are serving in Gabon. The Moodys spend three years serving in Tahiti as Temple President and Matron at the same time Matt and Sue Smith were serving there as Mission President. They send their love to you Sue, and to your family.

Mardeau is a sister that works in the office next to ours as a secretary. She speaks English as well as French and Lingala. She was at Conference with her family, two little girls and one son the oldest. Her husband was called to be the Stake Young Men's President. He has served seven years on the High Council.

President and Sister Cook leave for South Africa tonight so we had a gathering of all the Senior Missionaries at our apartment Friday before they departed. It was fun to share dinner and conversation with these wonderful people.

One day as we returned from the office, just outside of our compound there is a big tree with vinelike aerial roots supporting it. A lighthearted young man was using one as a swing to the enjoyment of onlookers including Mark and me.

 

Love you and wish you a happy Thanksgiving. We are so grateful for all of you and your prayers in our behalf.

E & M