We are sitting in Sacrament meeting, March 23, 2014, in the St. Georges Branch, Grenada, West Indies. Our hearts are overflowing with joy. Ryan and his brother, Ricky, sit behind the sacrament table, preparing to bless the Sacrament.
Roger and his brother, Jemin, sit in front of them, as they wait reverently to pass the bread and water to the congregation.
Junior, their friend, sits in the back with Sister Bennie, reading the words from a hymnal.
Last year at this time, you would have found these men, some of them young adults, others near their forties, doing what most members of this demographic in the West Indies are doing, partying and the like. And yet, here they are, little more than half a year later, faithfully and worthily, fulfilling their priesthood duties. How they came to this point was nothing short of a miracle.
In July of 2013, Sister Emily Kime and Sister Kiersten Cragun "blanked" into the St. Georges area of Grenada in the West Indies Mission......meaning, they came into an area as brand new missionaries with no one to guide them as to where to go or who to contact. On their very first day in the neighborhood known as "The Valley", they stood on the side of the road discussing what to do next as they searched in vain for an appointment they could not find. They turned, as a young man walking up the street called out to them. "You looking for me?" he asked. They did not recognize him, but were happy to talk to anyone and eager to find those who would receive the message, so they answered something to the effect of "Yes, and who are you?" "Ryan", he answered. Then he gave them his phone number and asked them to call. They taught him once, but with his busy work schedule, they soon fell out of touch, but occasionally saw him on the street, never getting a chance to teach him. This period of time lasted a little over a month.
During July, the Sisters contacted a very promising lady named Val, and met her brother, Roger at the same time. Roger, though very cordial, was uninterested. Val, on the other hand seemed like a golden investigator, and the Sisters soon began teaching her. One day, as the duo waited to meet with Val, they met one of her other brothers, Jemin. He introduced himself and they explained their purpose and invited him to learn more. As they spoke to Jemin, he gestured behind himself saying "I have someone I think you know." Out from under the house came Ryan, whom they had not contacted for weeks. Being very happy to see him, both of these Sisters felt strongly that Heavenly Father had placed him in their path, again, for a reason. Ryan chastened them for abandoning him, while they chastised him for never meeting with them. Carnival was the following week, but both Jemin and Ryan (assuming he wasn't working) agreed to meet with them afterwards to hear what the Sisters had to share. Soon after that encounter, Val missed an appointment and they taught Jemin instead. During the lesson with Jemin, they learned that he had good desires and yearned to know what he needed to do to be saved. The excitement to meet with both Ryan and Jemin after Carnival increased. Sadly, Val eventually discontinued lessons, but not until after she had played a vital role in introducing the Sisters to "The Boys".
By the time the first appointment rolled around, the Sisters ended up meeting on the porch of Roger's downstairs room in his mother's house. Jemin and Ryan were both there, and continued to meet with the Sisters over the following weeks. Roger also began sitting in, since the meetings were literally taking place on his doorstep. He explained that he didn't mind listening to the word, although he wouldn't read or pray. Between these 3 men, someone always kept a commitment, so the Sisters continued to go back to teach them. Heavenly Father had truly orchestrated events in such a way to ensure that each of "The Boys" were taught long enough for their conversions to come about. It was during this period of time that "The Boys" came to occupy a special place in the hearts of Sisters Cragun and Kime. They began to look forward to each appointment with them.
Each of "The Boys" had different turning points in their journey towards conversion, but two, in particular, struck all three of them. The first came in an act of service, which the Sisters hardly noticed, but "The Boys" did. One day, as the Sisters drove into the valley, they saw Ryan standing on the side of the road carrying two large bags of clippings. They were happy to see Ryan and quickly parked, hopped out of the car, and helped him carry the bags to the trash. Afterwards, they had a short lesson with him and then parted ways. Unbeknownst to the Sisters, it was at this point that Ryan really began to listen to what the missionaries had to say, because it was then that he knew that they really cared. He shared the incident with Roger and Jemin and they had similar reactions. That seemingly insignificant act of service was a crucial turning point in his conversion, and the Sisters weren't even aware of it.
Among the many, many tender mercies given by the Lord in the course of teaching these wonderful men, one of the greatest was the fact that just after they began coming to church, General Conference rolled around. You can always count on the Prophet! All 3 of them attended, and the spirit they each felt was something they had never experienced before. Their reaction was uniform. Whereas, before they had struggled with their desire to repent and change, each came out of the church that day with the hope of always retaining that feeling in their lives. As they listened to the words of the prophets and apostles, the spirit filled them with a desire to follow Jesus Christ, particularly by being baptised. It was at this point that they really wanted this to happen in their lives. Their roads of repentance were not easy at any point, and still now, months later, it surely has its struggles and difficulties, but they came to understand that though it was hard, it was worth it, and that was enough for them!
The Sisters came to love these men and "The Boys" came to trust the Sisters and act upon the messages by reading, praying, and going to church. The Spirit truly touched their hearts and wrought a mighty change therein. A light came into their eyes, into their bearing, and their thirst for that which is good grew into a great desire to follow the Savior. They acted on faith that the message that was being taught to them was something that would bring goodness into their lives. And they were right. As they acted on it, their faith was confirmed little by little and in time developed into powerful testimonies of the restored gospel.
Ryan was baptised first, on October 27th, 2013. Roger followed soon thereafter on November 2nd, and Jemin did on November 24th of that year. They have become powerful examples and testimonies of their faith to the people around them. Soon after their baptisms, they began taking the Sisters to their friends. Just as the sons of Mosiah, they could not stand the thought of their brothers and sisters languishing without the truths they now enjoyed, and the blessings which were now enriching their lives. On March 8th, 2014, Ryan's brother, Ricky, was baptised after only 3 weeks of meeting with the Sisters. Surely the powerful testimony and spirit his brother possessed paved the way for Ricky's conversion to proceed at such a pace.
Roger took the missionaries to everyone he knew, and soon, his close friend, Junior, will also join the faith. Their testimonies have continued to increase, as they share the gospel and keep their covenants, as has their knowledge of the gospel.
Had you passed these men on the streets before their conversion, you never would have thought of them as likely members of the church, and yet, here they are reverently, worthily and lovingly blessing and passing the sacrament. It took a miracle, lots of them, to get them here. Heavenly Father pulled so many strings, set circumstances up so precisely and carefully, in order for Sisters Kime and Cragun to begin, and continue, teaching them long enough for each to experience that mighty change of heart, despite setbacks and delays. But that's precisely what God promises missionaries according to their faithful obedience: miracles. And that's what "The Boys" are. And that's what has happened in their lives. Miracles.
And here's the rest of our week!
Before Sister Kime got transferred, she wanted to help finish the application for Ryan to go on a mission.
Elder Smith frantically helped Ryan get ready for missionary pictures!
Just a few more things to do before we could let Sister Kime be transferred. After 9 months here, she knew important things that the rest of us didn't, so we were getting a crash course before we could let her leave the island. Whew!!!
On Wednesday we had transfers.......we lost Sister Kime to Barbados, and dropped her off at the airport in the wee hours of the morning. She will be missed!
Elders Dohrman and Strong
Saturday, March 30, we had 2 baptisms! First was Kevon Francis, taught by Elders Dohrman, Strong and Smith. Kevon is a good friend of the Maturine family.
Our 2 baptisms were an hour apart this week, so we had a bit of time in between to take pictures!!!!
Smith and Larson
THE SMITH BROTHERS! So many Smith's on this island!
Visiting with Petra Smith
We were driving between Gouyave and St. Georges and spied Simone and Heston Cummings walking down the road carrying grass in their bags for their sheep. Such great peeps!
Heston took Elders Dorhman, Strong and Smith on a hike during the week to his farm up in the mountains. Absolutely beautiful!!!
Just some incredible sights on this gorgeous island of Grenada. How lucky are we????
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