Arrive Early!

We attended Tema Stake Conference on Sunday. As always in West Africa, we have found if you want a decent seat arrive early. We were in the first overflow and 40 minutes early. By the time the meeting started the room was completely full - probably about 1500+ people! Notice the fans. Its hot in West Africa and so in every chapel and classroom fans hang from the ceiling. We always try to sit under one. When the chapel and overflow fills they fill the classrooms and pipe a video feed into TVs.

This little girl sat across the isle from us. I love the children in Africa. This is the first time I had ever seen a little girl dressed Ghanaian style. I just had to take her picture! Most girls dress in frilly American style Sunday dresses - very pretty dresses like you'd see on Easter Sunday. Notice her little sister with all the piggy bands or barretts in her hair. This is typical on very little girls. As you can see all most all of the men and boys were white shirts and ties. A few African men come in their caftans. I think these are usually not members - just coming to see what the church is all about. Community leaders are often invited to meetings like this.

Elder Cardon spoke on witnesses of Christ.

John 5:36
The works (miracles) Christ performed bear witness that He was the Son of God
John 5:37; Mark 1:11; Matthew 17:5
Heavenly Father bore witness of Jesus Christ
John 1:33-34; Mark 1:7;
John the Baptist bore record of Christ as the Son of God
Matthew 16:16-17
The Disciples bore testimony of Christ as the Son of God
John 5:39
The scriptures bear testimony that Jesus is the Son of God


I could not help but think that without the words of the prophets, would we have much knowledge of Christ? All books of scripture should bear witness of Christ, as the Son of God.

The prophet Isaiah of the Old Testament testified of Christ (Isaiah 7:14)

The Disciples, and people who knew Christ like Mary Magdelene, people who were healed: all bore witness that Jesus was the Son of God.

The Book of Mormon is filled with prophets who were witnesses of Christ.
1st Nephi 11:20-33; Helaman 14:2-6 Samuel the Lamanite; Mosiah 15, Abinadi
and many more.

We can be witnesses of the Savior. We bear the fruit that grows from living His Words. Our countenance witnesses of Him; Our words witnesses of Him; our love of our fellow man witness of the Savior. I have pondered over this idea of witnesses and have come to the conclusion that on judgement day our life will witness our faith in Him. Our eyes will witness if we have faith in Him by the light they radiate. Our words that flow from our mouths will honor Him and us or condemn Him and us. Our very nature will be determined by an accumulation of our good works or our evil works and will accessed by Him quickly. Our repentent nature, our humility or pride: all will be evident to Him.

Jewish law demanded two or witnesses of people or events. Latter-day scriptures say that everything will be established by 2 or 3 witnesses. In reading the scriptures I find the doctrines taught in the Old Testament and repeated in the New Testament and confirmed in the Book of Mormon. It is really a fun study because you can pick up more depth as you compare what is said in each source and increase understanding.

Ezekial wrote: "Thus saith the Lord God; Behold I will take the stick of Joseph(Book of Mormon) which is in the hand of Ephriam and the tribes of Israel his fellows and will put them with him, even the stick of Judah (The Bible) and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone and will gather them on every side and bring them into their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel;" God uses all scriptures to testify of His only Begotten Son.

I am grateful for all the witnesses we have that bare testimony of the Savior, as the literal Son of God.

Africa West's Dancers

One of our members has created a dance troupe in order to preserve the cultural heritage of West Africa. Occaisionally when we have special visitors in town, these youth are asked to perform. We have had interns in from BYU for a few weeks and last night we were all entertained. Here is a taste of what we saw.

As amazing as the dancers, were the drummers.

Another Great Mission Presidents Conference

This past week was our Mission President's Conference. Twice a year the mission presidents in West Africa gather together to be instructed, to share experiences and testimonies, and to relax a bit. Elder Shipley and I are always in charge of the logistics for these conferences. Fortunately we have great help from Emelia Ahadje who is the manager of the travel office. She always arranges for the hotel and for the restaurant(s) we use and does a wonderful job. Elder Shipley prepares agendas, handouts, and makes sure all the supplies are at the conference. We pack the car up with equipment, song books, and materials and arrive at the hotel early to make certain everything is in order and then we get the priviledge of sitting in all the meetings. It is a real treat for us.

The people in the trenches of West Africa are our Mission Presidents who work hard long hours everyday caring for, instructing and sheperding about 100+ young missionaries. It is like being a parent to 100 young adults. My uncle was a mission president in France. He told me (when he returned 35 years ago)that he rarely got more than 4 hours of sleep. I think the mission presidents here get more than that but they can expect to receive phone calls anytime day or night from their missionaries. These Mission Presidents and their wives are great men and women. They serve for 3 years except in Nigeria where they serve for 2 years.

All of them bore testimony of knowing the Lord was in this work: of having words placed in their mouths, and thoughts come to them to make them aware of problems;Of feeling great peace in fearful situations; Of knowing how to handle situations.

Pres. Sitati, the first African to become a member of the Quorum of Seventy, a general authority in the church, shared his thoughts on the calling. He said he is often asked about how he feels to be the first black general authority. His answer was: "In the restored church we don’t have contituences. We have only one church. The message does not have color. The message is the same throughout the world. People must change to claim the same salvation. There will never be an African message but the true message of the restoration. We are preparing a people to greet the Lord."

What a great man he is. He does not think of himself as a "color" only a man of God. I have felt that way as I visit the saints in West Africa. I do not feel my color, I do not feel theirs. I only see them as children of God, purifying their lives that they may be prepared to greet the Lord.

The Woodwards left a Hole in Everyone's Hearts

The Woodwards are favorites of every senior missionary. They had to leave us in April for Emergency medical leave. We all hoped and prayed they would return to us this month, but it was not to be.

Sr. Woodward was in charge of the PEF (Perpetual Education Fund) in the Africa West Area. She interviewed students who wanted educational loans from the church. It is a beautiful program inspired by revelation to President Gordon B. Hinkley, our past prophet, to bring people out of poverty through education. It is available to those who are 30 years or younger. When Sr. Woodward began administering the program their were about 70 young adults taking advantage of the program. When she left there were over 250. She not only gave them opportunity but she loved them dearly and they loved her. She knew each one, text messaging them every month, sending greetings on their birthdays, and giving hugs to them as they would drop by the office.

Elder Woodward was in charge of welfare funds. These are used to help schools, communities, and individuals. Members of the church fast one Sunday a month and contribute the cost of two meals to the church. These funds are used to help members in need...some in need of basics like food,housing,and medical. Applications come to him through bishops and then he reviews them and submits them for approval. Welfare funds donated by members help to provide major projects: relief after a disaster, improvement to a school or hospital, wheelchairs for the handicaped, etc.

The wonderful thing about the Woodwards was their light heart. Their ability to laugh when things were not going great. Sr. Woodward gave you a word of encouragement and a great smile even though she herself was not feeling well at all. She would always say "I just love being here! I can't believe I was allowed to come to Africa! I love my mission." She felt that way every minute and fought going home until it was clear she had to.

Elder Woodward was Elder Shipley's walking partner. They walked the streets of Accra every morning at 5:30am for an hour, taking a different route each day. I'm sure they talked over everything. There is nothing better. It is like Sally in Peanuts "The Doctor is In". They loved that time together. It just hasn't been the same since they left.

Fortunately the Woodwards live within a mile or two of one of our sons...so we know we will see them again! We Love you Woodwards!

Encounter with the Police

Last weekend we were pulled over by the police.
Elder Shipley: Hello how are you today?
Police: We need to check....Oh you are a servant of God. I don't want to waste your time. Go on.

Opps! There Goes Another Rubber Tree Plant!

When Elder Shipley and I were children there was a song that had a chorus that went, "Opps there goes another rubber tree plant!" Well we had never seen or known what a rubber tree looked like, but the tune was catching and we loved singing it. Last weekend we walked through a rubber tree plantation singing that song.

The forest was beautiful - very tall white barked trees - ferns and other vegetation on the forest floor. Little pails attached to the trees to harvest the rubber (the sap) from the tree. Many trees had 2 and 3 pails - one below the other - to catch the drips with the pail above them became full. We pulled a small glob out of the pail and formed it into a string and then tied the ends together - it was just like a rubber band - amazing.



And so while we serve in West Africa we continue to learn about the world and the creations of God. Really interesting how one type of tree sap can give you maple syrup and another type of tree sap can give you rubber!

Palm Sunday

Last Sunday was Palm Sunday. As we entered Takoradi, a port city north of Cape Coast, we observed families walking to their services with palm leaves in their hands. Living in Utah we never saw a Palm Sunday celebration. We arrived at church in Sekondi. Accross from our church was another congregation. Their people had formed a parade and were marching down the street. I couldn't help myself I had to get a movie of it.


It was a beautiful site to watch the Ghanians show their love for Jesus. The people of Ghana love the Bible and they love God. Many will read their scriptures when they have a lunch break, and they feel no ridicule from those around them. Someone recently criticized the President of Ghana for meeting with religious leaders. He replied that Ghana was a nation that believed in God and would always seek His direction. It is nice to know there is a country in the world that honors God. We find it refreshing.

April is the month we celebrate the ressurrection of Jesus Christ. Latter-day revelation has taught us much about Jesus. He was not born in December but on April 6th. He was literally the son of God, born of Mary. He has a body of flesh and bones. He knows our thoughts and the intents of our heart. The world was created by Him. He created the animals, the plants, and man. He was chosen by Heavenly Father to come to this earth and take upon himself the sins of the world. He accomplished this in Gethsemanie and suffered not only for our sins but also the infirmities, pains, and sicknesses of all people that He may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infimities, and that he might be able to extend his mercy to us if we but repent. His atonement was completed as He gave up His life at Golgotha.

The atonement affects our daily life as the Savior extends to us his enabling grace that strengthens us to walk in His light and fulfill those things we were sent to earth to accomplish. He lovingly gave us commandments that would bring us joy and happiness in our life, if we would live them. He is unchanging: He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is someone we can trust. He is no respector of persons. He loves each one of us. He knows the beginning from the end. Love comes from Him. In the last days the 'love of man shall wax cold' said Isaiah. That is happening as the world turns away from Him: man is loosing his ability to truly love another.

Jesus is my comfort and my joy. He is always there for me. I can trust Him explicitly. He guides my life. He answers my prayers. I know He lives. I have felt Him in my life. He is my hope and my salvation. I love Him. For me, my greatest joy would be to meet Him and have Him say "Well done."