Thank You Elder Benedict!

We spent our 40th Anniversary in Praia, on the Island of Santiago.
We had dinner with President and Sister Oliveira, (who made Flan!)
Elder and Sister Mathews,  (the office couple who made us home-made Root Beer Floats!).
and Elder and Sister Thompson, (the new Humanitarian couple who came when
Elder and Sister Broderick completed their mission in April.)

We had a wonderful time and have been and are blessed to know and serve with such great people. 
Since we live on a different Island, it was a rare treat for us to be with all of them.
We had some good meetings, trainings, and enjoyed our time together there.

After the meetings, as we were preparing to go to our hotel, we happened to meet some journalists from California. One was writing for the Huffington Post about little places in Africa.
When they saw our badges, they had a question: "Why don't some people in your Religion like being called: Mormons?  What do you want to be called?  Should we call you L.D.S.ers instead?
We answered rather quickly. "You can call us about anything you'd like!  'Mormons' will work just fine
We have been called many things by many people!"  They laughed with us.

We tried to answer their question: "The reason some prefer not to be called Mormons is that
it doesn't give out the important information that we are Christians.
The full name of our Church is: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints.
We are followers of Jesus Christ and belong to His Church.
Our glad message is that He has once again restored His original Church to the earth!
That once again, Prophets and Apostles are living on the earth and we can know God's will for us!" 

The journalists had been robbed the night before and it made me wonder what 
their impression of Praia was like because of that experience.  I wish they could meet the people that we know and love here, so their essays and articles will reflect the good that we have found here.
It was fun to visit with them and fun to read some of their work on the internet.
It would be difficult to sum up a people with a few days or encounters.

A few months ago, we had a fellow from France look us up, asking many important and interesting questions.  He was a journalist studying Religions on small Islands.  It is something how people have an interest in knowing a bit moreabout what 'Mormons' are really like and what they really think and believe.

It is easy to know what Mormons believe. 
 http://mormon.org/ and http://www.lds.org are beautiful websites with the basics.

What 'Mormons' are like is about as varied as one could possibly imagine if writing a novel!  http://mormon.org/people/find 
From every walk of life, with all kinds of interests, hobbies, talents, dreams, and jobs, 
Mormons are just people who know that we are all Children of God. We know that we lived with Heavenly Parents before we came to this earth. We know that this earth was created for us to learn and grow and to be tested. We know that Heavenly Father sent His Son to this earth with an important plan of Forever Happiness for His Children and that our choices here will determine where we will live forever.  We study The Bible and The Book of Mormon. We value Scriptures given to Prophets through Revelation. We know that this life is an important time to learn to repent, to forgive, and to love.

To be a Covenant people just means that we make promises and God makes promises to us. Temples have been built throughout the history of the world for this very reason.  It is an organized way to count on what matters most in our lives; to stay on track of the very reason we came to earth.   
The amazing part is that because He is our literal Father in Heaven and loves each and every person every born to this earth, no one has to be left out of this Joy...unless they choose to.

What a blessing to serve here and to witness our brothers and sisters as they learn about our Heavenly Father's  Plan, (The Gospel of Jesus Christ). 
Any person who has:
1. a Sincere Heart
2. Real Intent
and 3. Faith in Jesus Christ 
can know for himself if these things are true. 

WE CAN GET ANSWERS TO SINCERE PRAYERS!
All kinds of folks teach all kinds of things, but asking God, who does not lie, is the way to know for sure.

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I just think everybody that possibly can, should serve a full-time mission.
It is a great time to study and share the Gospel, a wonderful time to meet so many beautiful people,
a reverent time to feel our Savior's Love and to understand the love of family,
a blessed set apart time to understand why we are all on this earth
and what we should do about it!  We are learning and witnessing miracles as we try our best to serve.

I can imagine many great places to spend a 40th anniversary,
but none more lovely than being in the Mission field with a Companion like mine.

Thank you Elder Benedict!
I love you!