Friday, October 3, 2008

Amazing Pioneer Stories in Africa

In honor of the General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is tomorrow and Sunday, I wanted to share this amazing story of how the Church came to be in Africa. When I first heard it, I was truly amazed, but more than that, I felt the Spirit touch me and let me know the truth of it. As I read the linked story, I felt the Spirit again. For anyone not interested in reading the long version in that linked article, I will relate the first story I was told:

Anthony Obinna (I got the name from the story) had a dream one night where an angel took him to a magnificent building and showed him all around it. Years later he saw a Readers Digest magazine featuring the Mormon Church, and the picture of the cover was of that same building - the Salt Lake Temple. He knew immediately he needed to write to the Church and request materials. After many requests, the Church finally sent materials, and after many more he was able to be the first member baptized in his area. The longer version of the story explains in more beautiful detail how amazing his story was and is, but again, I wanted to offer a simpler version.

- end of story -

I loved that story, and I am glad to see how much the Church has grown in Africa. It now has at least one temple, many stakes, and many missionaries going there. In a few short weeks, my wife's oldest nephew will begin serving a French-speaking mission in Africa. I am deeply proud of him for his sacrifice, and I look forward to hearing more about his experiences.

-- Robert

P.S.: For anyone interested in General Conference, it can be listened to on http://LDS.org/ or watched on http://byu.tv/ or BYU TV/KBYU. If I can find it, I will also share a story of how the Church came to Korea tomorrow.

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