Preparation Day

On preparation day we got to
go visit the Fayetteville Rose

 Garden with another Senior Couple

 in our area. The gardens 

 were not as big as we expected but the roses
were beautiful.

We had a nice time and a little bit of fun too.

April Work and Activities

   I spent some time this past week repairing shirts and pants for two different Elders and some for Keith too.  The Elders just say "you can do that?"   or "how do you know how to do that?"  I repaired a zipper for one Elder and he was amazed.  We enjoy what we can do for them.  We took a companionship to the Temple on Friday for one of their two trips a year to the temple.  We called for a reservation but the Temple was full so we thought we would just read scriptures while waiting but luckily we took our clothes and got in on a cancellation.
We are so spoiled at home. We don't have to make Temple reservations and can get in on a session at any time. The Raleigh Temple is one of the small temples with small ordinance rooms and fewer sessions during the week. Plus it is an hour and fifteen minutes away.  So spoiled!!
We are also spoiled with members on every corner and neighborhood.  We drive A LOT of miles out here to find people, to go to district meetings etc. Our ward house is pretty close so that is nice.  When we spend ALL DAY at church on Sundays it is nice not to have a long drive home at the end of the day.

I also went to Activity Days and helped the girls sew "jean bags" to carry their scriptures in.  We cut the legs off old pairs of jeans and then sewed them up at the bottom and sides so they formed a bag that already had pockets for their Articles of Faith cards etc.  They also had a Stake Activity for the girls. Each ward represented various women of the scriptures.  The Fort Bragg girls were the Mothers of the Stripling Warriors.  I got to help sew them some simple dresses and head pieces for that 

 activity. We continue to help the Ward Missionaries look for unknown members that are on their ward lists.  Sorry to say most of the time they are military families that have already moved away to another duty station before we get there.

We have had the opportunity to attend the Temple with two different military couples who have been sealed in the temple and two or three more will be going soon.  It has been a nice opportunity for us to meet these couples and go with them. The young Elder and Sister Missionaries are the ones who have taught them but we, as Senior Missionaries, get the blessing of going with them because the young missionaries can't always go out of their areas to attend.


We have come home to a couple of guests lately.  Surprises just before we opened our apartment door.

Special Missionary Conference

May 3, 2014

Today was an unexpected pleasure. It all started yesterday afternoon. We received a text from the mission office. Telling us that there would be a mission wide meeting in Knightdale (near Raleigh) about an hour and a half drive from here. We rescheduled our appointment for Saturday night, and made arrangements to pick up the Elders that don’t have a car. This morning early we got a text from the ward mission leader of the third ward asking us to come to a ward mission correlation meeting. So we hurried to the church and met with the mission leader, and the Elders and Sisters. When that was over we had just enough time to eat lunch, pick up the Elders and travel to Knightdale. When we got there the whole mission was there so we got see Elders and Sisters that we know who had been transferred away from our area. All the Senior missionaries were there too. Then our mission president’s wife came in, later our mission president came. We sang a few hymns, as is customary at all missionary meetings and had a few minutes of quiet reflection while we waited for the meeting to start. 

Then Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles came into the Chapel. With him, were two stake presidents from the area, Anthony F. Parker from the sixth quorum of the Seventy; an area seventy, 

Elder Paul B. Pieper First from the quorum of seventy,  and Elder Hugo E. Martinez, from the Second Quorum of the Seventy.  

Elder Parker is a large black North Carolinian with a North Carolina drawl. It was inspirational to hear him he bore a powerful testimony and told his conversion story.

We also heard from a Stake President, Elder Martinez, Elder Pieper, and then from Elder Neil L. Andersen.

Elder Anderson told how Elder L. Tom Perry was scheduled to visit North Carolina that weekend. Elder Perry, Elder Anderson and another Apostle were in an elevator together at the church office building. Elder Perry had just returned from an extensive trip and was exhausted. (He is 92 years of age) The other Apostle suggested to Elder Perry that he get someone else to take his place. Who could I get asked Elder Perry? Elder Anderson was thinking I have this Saturday free for a change, I will get to mow my lawn and do my spring yard work. Then the spirit prompted his to say I can take your place Elder Perry, I don’t have any other assignment this weekend.

Elder Anderson and our mission president, President Bernhisel were in the same stake years ago in Florida and knew each other. When Elder Anderson got the call to come to North Carolina he called President Bernhisel and said let’s have a missionary conference as well, while I am there.

The first thing Elder Anderson did was have the missionaries file past and shake hands with him, as well as the Seventies and the Stake Presidents that were there. Each and every one of the missionaries at that meeting had the experience of shaking hands with an Apostle of the Lord, and three of the Lord’s Seventies. 

He called on Elder Holt the Zone Leader of the Fayetteville West Zone. (Yes the zone where sister Mauerman and I work.) Interacting with Elder Holt, he explained that the pattern of the Savior was to have people come to him individually, I remembered that he had the Nephites come to him individually and see the marks in his hands and feet and that he blessed the children individually.  (3 Nephi 11, John 20)

He taught us that missionary work takes place on the individual level, one person at a time.

The mighty change of heart happens one by one. (Mosiah 5)

After a powerful talk and testimony from Elder Anderson he walked up and down the isles interacting with the missionaries. He would ask questions and let the Elders and Sisters respond to the questions with answers from the Book of Mormon. As he listened to the answers he would fill in with the background to that scripture. He didn’t just stop with the verse from the Book of Mormon, he talked about the entire chapter. He explained to us that we should think of the Book of Mormon in terms of what is in the chapter not just the verse.

I know most of the verses that were quoted that afternoon, but I am really weak on knowing the reference where that verse came from. I came away from that meeting with hope. I can remember chapters. It looks like I have some work to do. I wonder if the Lord worked it out for Elder Anderson to come to that meeting just to help me. I’m not sure about that, but it seemed like it. I sat on the end of a row and he did come and stand next to me for quite a few minutes. I really felt as if he were there for me. I know all the other missionaries felt the same as well, isn’t it wonderful how one speaker can touch so many people in a personal way when the spirit is with him.

We continue to have opportunities to Volunteer on Post

Last week we had an opportunity to Volunteer at the For Bragg Sesame Street/USO Experience for Military Families. It is offered to help service members and their families ‪deal with the unique challenges they face, from deployments and homecomings to frequent relocations. 

We helped pass out these Sesame toys and USO Bandanas to all the children as they arrived at the show.







We are in the back corner on the right hand side of this picture. Handing out toys and bandanas to the children as they arrive. Lots of children where there that morning and they held three other shows also...where others volunteered.

This week we volunteered at the Pope Family Center Storytime. After a story was read we help the children make their craft items.  They seemed to have a great time.

We are glad we have the opportunity to help and it is fun to see the children enjoy themselves. It gives their moms a chance to attend a pleasant activity with their children but they don't have to plan or organize it...just show up and enjoy.

Tender Mercies and Miracles

Last night we were in the Ward Mission Leaders home for a meeting with the missionary committee and the full time Elders and Sisters in the Fort Bragg Ward. As the meeting was ending one of the Ward Missionaries told us a story about the fellow soldier he brought to church yesterday. He said he was asked by the Elders Quorum President to pick up a fellow soldier, who was here at Bragg from a National Guard unit in Arizona. He is just here for special training for about 3 weeks and doesn't have a car to get to church. So the ward missionary picked him up and on the way home he invited him to dinner so he didn't have to eat at the Mess Hall. During dinner the conversation some how turned to the name of an inactive neighbor and the soldier said "do you mean ... so and so". Yes said the ward missionary.  "Well I used to be his Bishop back when we were in such and such a unit and I got him active at that time" etc etc. They decided that while here the soldier will go visit the inactive brother. WOW   After the ward missionary told the story I said "The Lords work is amazing. Do you want to hear the rest of that story??"  So I told them the story really begins when we first arrived here.  We tried several times to get in touch with any chaplains. Finally we met one LDS chaplain and asked him to help us get permission to post our information for LDS Soldiers needing help or a list of meeting times and address to our ward building. We could already do things with ward members but we wanted to have our names available for incoming soldiers etc.  He was pretty busy by the time we met him, getting ready to deploy to Afghanistan.  We kept waiting. Finally the day before he left he got permission for us to meet with one of the head Chaplains on base.  This chaplain is not LDS but was very nice to us. We gave him our information and asked if it could be posted somewhere so other chaplains would know about LDS help if soldiers needed it. He later sent an email, more than once, reminding many chaplains about our information. So we knew our information was out there.  Well fast forward 3 months. We were out visiting one day, just a few days before General Conference,  when I heard the cell phone ring but didn't answer it in time.  We pulled over a few minutes later and I returned the call. It was from a Chaplain who is here at Bragg for just 3 weeks from Arizona, who wanted LDS information for his men. I assumed he was LDS but as the conversation got going I found he was not, but did want LDS information for some of his men.  This chaplain got our information from the Chaplain of the 3 month ago experience.  So I told him what he needed to know and told him to have his soldiers call us if they needed anything.  Well one soldier called, the one our ward missionary picked up.  Since we don't live on base I called the ward mission leader to ask if he could arrange a ride for this soldier. He called the Elders Quorum Pres who called the ward missionary who gave the soldier a ride, the one who was the Bishop who activated the neighbor. Sounds to me like the Lord is trying to get back in touch with our inactive member.  And by the way we have been talking to his wife, hoping to get in for an FHE. Tender mercies and miracles??  Yes they still happen !!

Baptism of a Wonderful Military Family

During the month of March we were happy to see one of the military families at Fort Bragg become members of the church.  The wife starting taking lessons just shortly before we arrived here in Fayetteville. She had become friends with some of the members in the neighborhood and the Bishops wife invited her to a church activity. She enjoyed it and started asking questions and soon was taking the missionary lessons.  In late November we had Stake Conference with Elder Quentin L. Cook as the visiting authority. She got to meet him and shake his hand. She also got to visit with Elder Alvin F. Meredith. We met her during the first set of Marriage Strengthening lessons. We were able to teach her two of the lessons along with 5 other wives from the Fort Bragg Ward.  All of their husbands were deployed at the time and they learned from one another and we learned from all of them.  This new member developed a very strong testimony and began telling her husband via texting and skyping etc. that he needed to "stop drinking" or needed to "start studying the Book of Mormon" or "could she start paying tithing even though she wasn't baptized yet". He soon began to notice the wonderful happiness she was exhibiting and did begin to read the Book of Mormon while in Kosovo.  He came home in December for one week and while here he came to church. He loved everyone he met. When he returned to Kosovo he missionaries started teaching him via Facebook chats and he read the entire Book of Mormon in a short time. When his deployment came to an end in February he finished the missionary discussions and he and his wife were baptized in early March. Two weeks later he received the Melchizedek Priesthood and was able to baptize his son just before the transfer of one of the missionaries that taught them as a family.  It was been a great experience for the entire ward and all the missionaries in this area.  The Lord truly prepared them and they recognized the truth so readily. They continue to study the Book of Mormon and are VERY excited for General Conference this weekend. She is doing all she can to prepare the family to have a wonderful experience as they watch the Conference together.  It has been a joy for us to see the happiness and growth and love in this family. Recently we gave them a Family Home Evening about the Family Proclamation and they already knew much about it because they study so much but we enjoyed the lesson with them and the children loved the Proclamation Banner. We are blessed to count them as our friends. In this military setting we see so many who have accepted the gospel while serving their country. It is wonderful to see. 

 Today we got to go to Duke University for our P'day with other Senior Missionaries from our mission.  We had the unique opportunity of viewing...even touching a 1st Edition Book of Mormon.  We also toured the famous Duke Cathedral. We enjoyed the day very much.

Joseph Smith said:  “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” (History of the Church, 4:461.)

I testify that the Book of Mormon is true.  I have read it many times. Each time I do the Spirit testifies to me again that is it true.

 We joy in the opportunity to strengthen this testimony in the lives of many here in North Carolina.