Hello Family and Friends,
All is well here in Montgomery, Alabama.
Sorry it took so long for us to make contact. We’ve been “running silent” simply because we’ve been in over our heads. Jacob sums it up nicely when he says….”the time passed away with us, and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream”. But we’re waking some so we’ll try an update.
What a wonderful experience the MTC was. We meet 25 other great couples who were preparing to serve the Lord all around the world. Most of them were there at great sacrifice. Many retired earlier than they planned to or left jobs they will return to (they hope). Several said they had to go now before all their savings, 401 accounts, and other retirement funds totally disappeared! But all of them felt this was the time they should serve. Most felt a great sense of urgency. Funny sometimes how the Lord works His purposes.
The training was great. The church really works hard to prepare you! We’re grateful for that. We were taught by some of the best teachers in the church. And by other couples who have been on missions. They shared experiences that were real. Things they had done that translated well from paper to reality! We were truly blessed to have had the MTC experience.
We arrived at the Mission Home in Birmingham on the 18 of November for an in brief with President Tate. He sent us to Montgomery to begin working with Maxwell AFB and the missionaries in the city. We found a nice unfurnished apartment, in a safe location, relatively close to the two chapels in the area and to the base! It is perfect. We went back to Zach and Rikki’s in Mississippi on Thanksgiving and picked up a load of furniture they had been saving for us! One of the items is a chair we bought when we first came to Alabama in 1975. We had given it to Z & R and now it’s come home again! Our home is now furnished in early “Spartan.” It’s a style becoming of senior missionaries. We now have a table and chairs, a love seat, two chairs and a bed. Boxes and crates make for excellent night stands. And Tupperware bins serve as easy access drawers. We have purchased a blow up bed for guests! If you are in the area come by and see us!
Our specific duty here in Montgomery is to work with the young men and women who come to Maxwell AFB and Gunter AFB for training. Every year, 75% of all new Air Force officers and NCOs come through these bases for initial officer training or follow on professional training. Our calling is to reach out to them and make sure they have an opportunity to worship. We help get them to church, do FHE/scripture study, and we’re just “Mom and Dad” in general. Plus I can do some “military experience” talk when appropriate. We’re certain the Lord wants the military relations program here as the way has been prepared and He made it possible for us to move things along at a much quicker pace than we thought possible.
We see it as a great chance to help and strengthen those already strong in the faith, grab hold of those who are a little shaky in the faith, and introduce some to the gospel for the first time. We’ve been working closely with the Chaplains to establish the program and they’ve been very helpful. They are good men who genuinely care about the men and women of the military. They are grateful for our help and they are astonished beyond measure that we are doing this for free. In fact some of the people we’ve met have seemed quite moved that we would be paying our own way to serve.
Our other calling is to work with the missionaries off base in the southwest quadrant of Montgomery. Those of you who are familiar with the city know that is a rough, rough part of town. Gunshots are frequent and injury and death are far too common an experience for these people. But He has prepared many of them to receive the gospel and now our job is to bring them along. It’s both a heart warming and heart breaking experience.
The Prophets have long told us that Satan’s goal is to destroy the family and he has had great success down here among the black people. The majority of the sisters we work with have many children – all with different last names and no father in the picture. And the young men who grow up in these conditions are so alienated that it is hard to help point them in the direction to make right choices. But the sisters are so very hungry for the power, comfort and blessings of the Priesthood in their homes. We know we just need to be patient for its all part of His plan. He is in control and will bring things along as He sees fit in his own time.
And there are rays of hope – let me tell you about our friend Willie Thomas. He joined the church about nine months ago. His wife is dead set against the church and doesn’t want Willie to have any contact. I’m afraid she may be a little abusive. But he knows it is his lifeline so he deals with her verbal abuse and lets us in. Willie is my age but the years have been really hard on him and he looks much older. He had cancer a while ago and he has an 18 inch scar from his pelvis to his chest bone. He still takes chemo and it’s taken it’s taken a huge toll. Though he’s a little hard to understand with his exaggerated southern drawl, Willie’s open and friendly and glad to see you.
They found the body of Willies daughter in a field last year - so badly beaten and brutalized that they had a tough time identifying her. So bad they cremated the remains rather than place her in a coffin. His life’s been tough and continues to be tough but he has the gospel so he has hope. There is a crumpled “Pass Along Card” with a small picture of the Salt Lake Temple on it - stuck in the corner of a picture frame in his living room. He points to it with a small tear in his eye and says “some day – my family be there – an we be together in next life”. Needless to say – I’ve learned a lot from Willie in the short time I’ve known him.
My Brothers and Sisters – and those of you within this circle - how blessed we are! How blessed we are to have the good news of the gospel so much a part of our lives that we may not even recognize it for what it is. It blesses our lives in ways we may not even know. We thank the Lord every day for letting us be here (sort of like we thank Him for letting us in the Temple). And we thank each of you for your love, support and prayers. Please keep them coming. They are real and they sustain us.
Merry Christmas,
Elder RC and Sue