May 3, 2015 - Clark

Sunday, May 03, 2015

The highlight of the week was to have David L. Evans, the Executive Director of the missionary program worldwide, be here for a zone conference with the missionaries.  There were several interesting facts he shared with us:

1. The change in missionary age allowed the total missionary force to grow to around 85,000 but they expect it to level off at around 79,000.  The change is age has had a lasting effect on increasing the missionary force. I believe before it was around 60,000.
2. The number of sisters has increased dramatically.  He mentioned that percentage increases are not as meaningful as the percent of the total missionary force.  The sister have grown from 11% to 24%.

While at dinner together at the mission home, he shared a story from President Boyd K. Packer.  Elder Evans served as a mission president in Japan.  President Packer counseled him to focus the mission baptismal targets not on numbers but he told him “you get what you go for”.

When the Salt Lake Temple was under construction, Brigham Young counseled the missionaries going to England to seek out tradesmen, such as masons, carpenters, painters, etc. who would be needed for temple construction.

While President Packer was serving as the mission president in New England, the church wanted to purchase the Joseph Smith historical sites but the property was tied up in some complex legal entanglements.  President Packer told his missionaries the Lord needed a brilliant real estate attorney and to begin the search and to notify him when they had found him.  He said, I know the Lord has prepared someone to help move his work forward, we just have to exhibit faith and find him.  Within a few month they did and the rest is history.  

Elder Evans was told by President Packer “you get what you go for”.  As a young mission president they sought after young families and young single men who could become missionaries and return home to begin righteous families.  They had success by exercising the faith discussed in Ether 12.  He gave the same counsel to President Thomas regarding establishing a stake in Likasi.  

Friday was the zone conference and Elder Evans spoke for about 3 hours to the missionaries.  He spent most of his time talking about marriage rather than missionary work.  He said the Lord is preparing you for a much more important work and that should be your focus.  Look to the temple and entering there with a righteous companion when you return home.  That will be the most significant calling in your life, that of husband, wife, father and mother.  

Our translator, Steve Mutombo, served as Elder Evans translator and he was genuinely pleased to have had this unique experience.  Steve’s engagement has been rocky because Matild’s family have been trying to convince her to postpone marriage, serve a mission, etc.  Her sister is Sister Mwenkeo is Matild’s sister and she and her husband had Matild live with them for a few years while obtaining her degree.  They wanted her to marry someone who had already accumulated things (money, property, position)  They paid her passport that would allow her to go to the temple and then attempted to persuade her to break off the engagement and go on a mission.  They told her she could find a better prospect than Steve while serving a mission.  We don’t believe there is a better prospect than Steve.  Elder Evans told of marrying just 3 months after his mission and that they starting with nothing but love for one another.  Brother and Sister Mwenkeo were at the conference; Brother Mwenkeo is a counselor in the mission presidency.  

Other events happened this week that deserve recording.  Felly Bukasa, the church purchasing agent, was promoted and moved his family to Kinshasa this week.  We were invited to his going away party.  The party included three Congolese couples and us.  They were Felly and Anacette Bukasa, Flavien and Crystal Kot, and Desire and Lily Ilunga.  It was held at Desire’s home.  We thought we were going for a short 30 minute visit that turned into a four hour entertainment and dinner.  We felt truly accepted and despite the language limitations, we had a great evening.  

Kenneth Mofokeng called on Tuesday with more bad news about the humanitarian department.  The worldwide director for water projects, Bret  Bass, was replaced a couple of weeks ago by Del Brady.  Kenneth had held a telephone conference with Del Brady who informed him that they (SLC) had only budgeted a single water project for Lubumbashi for 2015.  We have 5 proposals that have been pending since December and have been extremely frustrated with the delays in the approval process.  Kenneth is attempting to be our advocate but things continue to look bleak.  I really needed one of Elder Evans bits of advice found in Alma 29:3,6.  “I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me” and “why should I desire to do more than the work to which I have been called”.  We’re working hard to do all we have been called to do, despite the bureaucratic setbacks.

During the week we returned to Kamwenja School to see the progress they have made in installing roofing and ceiling materials to reclaim their school.  The installer’s name is Pierre (Peter) and his grandson Andre (Andrew) who is about 15 is helping him.  Andre has dropped out of school because his father died last year and his mother can’t afford to send him to school.  We have to pay cash for nails and lumber, so we take the installers with us to make sure we are purchasing everything they need in the right sizes and quantities.  

This shopping trip to the hardware store and the lumber yard would take about an hour at home, but here it was a six hour affair.  The lumber yard was run by women and as soon as we arrived, we were surrounded by a dozen salesmen vying for our business.  Last time they left Shelley and I in the car so the prices wouldn’t escalate just because they had white people with them.  This time we were armed with the previous prices and so I accompanied them.  It was a very unique experience and we captured it with a few pictures.  Transporting the lumber from the lumberyard to the school was also an adventure.  They used an old transport van with lumber twice the length of the van hanging out the back.  When we arrived at the school, they laid some car bumpers across the ditch to allow the van to enter the school compound to unload the lumber.  A fun day.

We attended the Ruashi 3rd Ward today to support Emmanuel in blessing their new baby son.  Their block meeting time starts at 11:30, not a good block time for children and then had a lot of them.  We’re off to the mission home now to eat the leftovers from Elder Evans dinner last night.  We enjoy the time with the other senior missionaries.  Have a great week.

Love, Dad (Elder Davis)