When We're Helping We're Happy

Service

        President Heid has assigned us and the other senior couples in the mission to attend different district meetings every Tuesday. This is an opportunity to meet with four to six Elders or Sisters when they join together to discuss what is happening in the area to which they have been assigned. Last week we were in Tema New Town and this week we were in Teshie. Here we met with Elders Sibeko from South Africa, Fayeampah from Ghana (remember we delivered him to the MTC a few weeks ago), Liiongitau from Tonga and Elder Tukuafu who is also Tongan but was born and raised in Australia. This is a wonderful chance to get to know these young people that give two years to serve others and to help bring people to Christ. Besides discussing the members or investigators that they have seen during the week there is a gospel discussion or lesson that is prepared entirely by one of the missionaries. This Tuesday Elder Liogitau was in charge and the topic that he had chosen was service. He did a fantastic job. These young people who are only eighteen or no more than in their early twenties are knowledgeable, enthusiastic and dedicated.

        As we discussed many thoughts about what and how to give service we realized that the best example of service is the Savior who is the ultimate servant having given all for all of us. The only way that we can even begin to repay our debt is by also serving. One of my favorite scriptures comes from the Book of Mormon, in the Book of Mosiah, chapter 2 verse 17. In part it reads; …that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God. To me this relates very closely to the second of the Ten Commandments. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self.

        The people here in Ghana are easy to love. They have been nothing but kind to us and we marvel each day that we have been given the opportunity to come here. We are finding our own little pockets where we too can serve. We try to find opportunities to fulfill the answer to …Have I done any good in the world today? Have I helped anyone in need?

         After we left the Elders we came back to the Temple to pick up President Azumah of the Tema New Town Branch. I have introduced you to him before when at the first of the year we had a service project at the school that he runs in Tema New Town. A few months back we helped spear head a drive to collect funds to purchase an ATV for him so that he could get back and forth from his home to his school and help fulfill is family and church responsibilities. Last week we borrowed a truck and delivered the ATV back here to Accra to the Mitsubishi dealership for servicing and this week we delivered it and President Azumah back to New Town. Barry has not lost his touch when it comes to strapping down a vehicle. These kinds of activities make us grateful beyond measure for what we have and what we can do, no matter how small.

Loading the ATV for a trip to the dealership.

Tie down.

They don't get too many of these. Brought everyone out.

After a week a short test drive.

A Dealership with a ramp? Really now.

   

Arrival back home wife and son bring boards to make a ramp to unload

We got some men passing by to help.

Made it.

    

We made a good show for these little spectators.

They are adding gutters to the "road".

        In the process of putting in the new gutters some how the sewer line got cut. We were only stuck for a moment. Luckily Gilbert's truck that we had borrowed had four wheel drive. I hope that you know how blessed we felt as we drove away. Though the day was long and the traffic a mess, especially trying to get back to Tema, we felt extremely rewarded.