Awesome Young Elders

Dear All, 

We greatly miss the association we have had with sister missionaries through the years! However, we continue to be extremely impressed with the quality of the young men with who we serve here in South Africa. Their dedication to the Lord and his work is truly amazing. They are also extremely kind to us more seasoned missionaries. We have learned that if you give them a little food they will do almost anything for you! 😉 Seriously, one of the greatest benefits of missionary service is the association enjoyed with these wonderful young men. It is an honor to be numbered with them.

We're still meeting in the tent! The church is able to provide modular prefab buildings for our use but we haven't been able to secure land in Motherwell on which to place them. We are speaking with the leaders a preschool and hope something might be arranged. They have had their power turned off due to lack of money so hopefully they are motivated to enough to make it happen. Sadly, church attendance has lessened since losing our school meetinghouse and having the ability to hold all our church meetings. So, we are hoping for a remedy soon.  

Despite the challenges with a meetinghouse for Motherwell, membership continues to increase. Four wonderful people were baptized in April and a great family moved into the ward. It is the Mike and Febie Rugara family from Zimbabwe. They live with their two young daughters in a home which consists of one room, probably about 12' x 12', with a double size mattress on the floor. They have one wooden chair which Sister Watson sat on and they turned a plastic bucket upside down and put a board and a pillow on it for me to sit. They made us feel like royalty because of the tremendous love and respect which they demonstrated. We asked how they like living in South Africa they said it was wonderful. They said "there is so much poverty in Zimbabwe and it is much safer in South Africa". Their appreciation for their new home, as humble as it is, gave us a renewed and deeper appreciation for the blessings we enjoy. We hope this story might do the same for each of you.

We love the work to which we have been called and we love Him who has called us. Our greatest desire is that all who we know and love will earn the rewards which come from living true to principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These rewards are incomparable and can be obtained no other way.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

The picture above is Ntombizodma (Zoey) Singata, who is 9 years old and was baptized, along with her big sister Noshipo. We have told you previously about the Singata family being so special to us. Also special to us are Elders Warren and Hawkins, both from England. Elder Hawkins was trained in Motherwell and is now training Elder Warren here. Both are wonderful and dedicated missionaries who we love.

  

This is the Tungata family. Big brother (with tie) was baptized a few weeks ago and now he was able to baptize his younger brother, and his girlfriend. 

This is Zoey with our Branch Mission Leader, Makhosandile Gotyana, who baptized her. Love here smile and sweet spirit!

This is Nana who was baptized a few months ago. She just turned thirteen and is a faithful church member. We love her new hair due which is pretty typical of the beautiful braids which are worn by many younger women. Nana's natural hair is only 3" or 4" long 

The Tent is Up

Dear All,

The only solution we could find after being abruptly kicked out of our school meeting house was to put up a tent, so that's what was done. The Motherwell Branch has met there for the past two Sundays and it is okay. It is actually less crowded, and we have a PA system! However, the big problem is that there are no classrooms. So, no meetings can be held beyond Sacrament Meeting. We did show a session of general conference for the last two hours but not sure what we'll do in the future. A prefab building may be in the works but that will take two to three months to install. Meanwhile, we hope the members will remain faithful, especially given that Fall is upon us and that tent is going to get cold! 

One of the great things about serving a mission as a senior couple, and something we really didn't think about before our mission, is that you are able to associate with and get close to other senior couples. Two such couples are the Stubbs from Parowan, UT, and the Smiths from Layton, UT. Problem is, the Stubbs went home this past week, and Smiths are going home in about two weeks. We love these, and others with whom we serve, and greatly enjoy each opportunity to be with them. We feel blessed to know each one and certainly hope to reconnect with them in the future. No question that missions provide the opportunity to make new and eternal friends.

Our days are full with serving the needs of the young, and not so young, missionaries, and associating with and serving the Motherwell Branch members. We told President Zitshu that we had missed spending as much time in the branch as in the past and that were going to organize our time better so we could do so. With that said, he gave us an assignment to teach temple preparation classes to ten people and strengthening marriage classes to six others. We couldn't be more excited about this assignment. The branch has decided to begin twice a year trips to the temple rather than once per year as in the past. So, we are going this July and we need to help all these people prepare. The strengthening marriage classes include at least two couples who plan to be married. Good times for sure!

We just passed seven months on our mission and time certainly is passing by more and more rapidly. While we often have a longing to be with our loving family and dear friends, we are greatly enjoying our mission. We are able to see evidence of the truth of the work to which we, and thousands of others, have been called to serve on a daily basis. This is the Lord's work, and we are all beloved of him. We love you and pray for you each day.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

 The Motherwell tent/chapel

We took a short trip with Elder and Sister Stubbs (in rear) and spent a night with President ans Sister Dan Jean. He is from Paris but joined the church after moving to South Africa and marrying his wonderful wife. He is now a counselor in the George District Presidency. We were with them at their ranch, which is a very large piece of property in a remote area. It was beautiful and their home was the fulfillment of what he dreamed of many years earlier. The gardens, the orchards, and the setting were all amazing.  Their home, the furnishings and pieces of art therein were also amazing.   

This is President Zitshu with his son, Ahlu. We love this man and his family. Ahlu is just speaking a bit but has learned to call me Elder Watson. Problem is, his parents say that he calls every white person Elder Watson.

The Diversity of the Work

Dear All, 

We decided to reduce our correspondence to once every two weeks in order to have something of interest to write about. Well, since doing that it seems there is too much to write about, making it difficult to even know where to begin. One thing for sure, we don't lack of things to do and it is seldom that we don't go to bed at night exhausted from the activities of the day.

Last Saturday was the conference for our two zones.  As always, it was a pleasure to meet with all the missionaries and spend time with President and Sister Merrill. It was especially nice as Sister Merrill attended Motherwell Branch with us, and they both had dinner with us on Sunday evening.  It was wonderful to spend the evening with them, becoming better acquainted, and leaning from the extensive experience they have gained over the past thirty three months of service. They will certainly be missed after their departure at the end of June. 

As we previously reported, one of our missionaries, Elder Lane, was stabbed in the back on February 21st. He and his companion, Elder Allred, have not been allowed to work in their area, the Zwide Branch, since the attack. Since that time we have done our best to communicate with the police in order to determine the status of the man who attacked Elder Lane. It turns out that he was arrested for at least two felonies but was not kept in custody. The Lt Colonel of Detective told us that they cannot build a case against the guy because those who witnessed his crimes refuse to testify out of fear, a very sad situation for sure. In the case of Elder Lane, he was the only one who was able to testify, and it was not enough. With this being the situation, we decided to close the Zwide Branch area until the situation improves. It is unfortunate because it has been such a productive area. When telling the Branch President about our decision, tears came to his eyes due to his love of the missionaries and the work they do. We hope the situation will improve so they can return soon.

Elder Lane was assigned to Knysna, a resort town about 3 hours East of us which was closed to missionary work a few months ago.  It was our job to set up a new boarding (apartment) for the area, so we took Elder Lane along with us to do the "heavy lifting". This also gave him the opportunity to become familiar with his new area. He will be returning there next week with a new companion. 

It was a great experience for us to spend the better part of two days with Elder Lane. He went through a tremendous trial in being brutally attacked, but he is all the stronger for it. What a wonderful young man and missionary he is. He is representative of the majority of missionaries with whom we have been associated through the years, and with whom we now serve in the South Africa Cape Town Mission. The strength, devotion to the Lord, and goodness, of these tens of thousands of missionaries is powerful evidence of the truth of the work being done by all who have served and who are now serving throughout the world. It is our sincere honor to be numbered with them.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

Photo above:  Elders Lane, Zongoro and Nyika in the town of George where furniture was stored.  

Moving into his new Knysna home.

Three fine young men were baptized this past Saturday and are the newest members of the Motherwell Branch. Bulelani (third from right) was baptized two weeks ago and he was able to baptize his brother (far left) and best friend (third from left). The young man who is third from left was baptized by Elder Warren (second from left), his first baptism as a missionary.  

Motherwell Branch members showed up for church yesterday only to find that we were locked out of our meetinghouse/school rooms. It turns out that the school principal decided to terminate our lease while not giving the three month notice that was stated in the lease. We ended up taking taxis (vans) to the nearest meetinghouse which is about 20 minutes away. We started Sacrament Meeting (no gen. conf. because of the time difference) about one and a half hours late, and then every one went home. Everyone was thankful to be together and to partake of the Sacrament. So, we are now without a place to meet!! We had three people from the church building department come from Johannesburg this morning to help find a solution to the problem. Last we heard, we may be meeting in a tent in a member's yard this week and for the next few weeks until portable buildings can be installed somewhere. Seriously, a tent in a yard! We'll let you know what happens. 

Doing Our Thing

Dear All,

Prior to coming to South Africa we heard of Elder and Sister Smith who were serving in the Motherwell Branch at that time.  We even had the opportunity to speak with them on the phone and hear about some of their experiences.  Among other things, we heard that they were helping people establish home gardens.  We also learned that they were conducting addiction recovery classes, something that was greatly needed in the area. While we were excited about the opportunity to serve, we felt inadequate in our abilities to carry on with the wonderful work which was being done by the Smiths.  These feelings prompted us to have a conversation with President Merrill, our mission president.  After telling him of our anxiety, he simply said, "don't worry, you will find your thing to do".        

We have just completed six months of missionary service and we can report that we are finding our thing to do.  In fact we have found many things which we have the experience and ability to do.  And, we expect we will find additional things we can do in the future. We have truly seen that the Lord does qualify each of us to do the work we are called to do.  We have witnessed this in our own experiences, and we have witnessed it with other senior couples with whom we serve.  All of us have the ability to make a significant contribution to the vital work of bringing people to Christ, and in helping them find the joy and happiness in life which we have received.  All we need to do is have a sincere desire to do this and be willing to make the sacrifices which may be necessary to serve.  In the end, they really aren't sacrifices, as the blessings from heaven far exceed whatever we might give.

So, life is good.  We awoke very early Sunday morning (our 51st wedding  anniversary) and drove about 4 hours to the town of George to attend church.  After spending the night, we took care of some business in the area and headed home, arriving Monday evening.  The drive along what is called "The Garden Route" was spectacular, and was especially nice with the sunrise behind us going and the sunset behind on our return.  However, the thing that was amazing was how wonderful it felt to be home, even after only one night away!  Home is a wonderful place to be.  Home is where we are nourished, both physically, intellectually, and spiritually.  Home is where we learn to love and are loved.  No matter how humble, home is our safe haven and it is where we want to be.  With this being said, please consider the purpose of this life.  Simply put, it is the time to prepare to return to our Eternal Home.  That is what missionary service is all about.  It is to help prepare the Lord's children to be worthy of that great reward.  We encourage all to contribute to this cause whenever and wherever you can.  The rewards for so doing are amazing.

All our love,
Elder and Sister Watson  

  The photo above is the Singata family who have become very special to us.  Viwe, in the black, is the girl who has had two surgeries, one on each leg, due to infections.  We have made many visits to the hospital to see that sweet girl.   

Sister Willie and Sister Sam with their boys at the Relief Society Birthday Dinner.

Brother and Sister Van Nie Kerk, along with Elders Diepeveen and Keech.  We visited this couple at their beautiful home in Jeffries Bay to discuss the possible beginning of "cluster group" meetings in their home.  They currently drive one hour to church and bring three non members with them.  The hope is that, as a result of their missionary work, church meetings and a unit of the church might begin in their home.  These two wonderful Elders certainly will help make it happen.   

Our last conference with the Port Elizabeth and Kwa Nobhule Zones.  Our visiting authority, Elder Ellis, and his wife are seated between us and the Merrills.  The other couple are the Stubbs.  They have become dera friends but will be heading home to Parowan, Utah in about three weeks. 

The Hand of the Lord

Dear All,

We hope our message finds you all well and happy. We miss our dear family and friends so very much, but we are content in the work to which we have been called. 

The most significant event of late was an attack on one of our dear missionaries, Elder Lane.  He and his companion were at a member's home and, when he returned to retrieve something from the car, a man walking by pushed him into the car and stabbed him in the back. His companion, Elder Allred, rushed him to the hospital where we met them and where he received quick attention. Thankfully, the injury was not severe and he was treated and released within a few hours. This was obviously a frightening event for this young Elder, but we have been amazed in the way he and his companion have dealt with it. They have responded with unwavering faith and an attitude of peace and love for all.

I accompanied them to report the incident to the police and explained to the captain of detectives that our purpose in coming to South Africa was to bring people closer to Christ. However, we would not allow our missionaries to serve in Zwide until we knew this dangerous man was in custody. The captain had previously explained the lengthy process involved before the man was arrested. However, after my comment he said, "we need you here", and he promised swift action. We have since seen considerable action and expect the Elders will be able to return to the area soon. We have seen the hand of the Lord in protecting Elder Lane from what could have been a much more serious injury.  Also, we have heard that many from within the community know of the attack and are very concerned about the welfare of our missionaries. I suspect they will receive even more positive attention than in the past.  

Since arriving in Port Elizabeth last October first, and beginning our service in Motherwell Branch, we have had the privilege of serving with a missionary from the Salt Lake area, Elder Ivins. It has been a great pleasure to serve closely with this young man and to witness his growth "up close and personal". We witnessed in him something that happens in all those missionaries who do as the Lord would have them and lose themselves in the service of others. Well, Elder Ivins' time and service in Motherwell ended recently and this occurrence was met with much sadness on the part of the branch members, and us! It was a touching and memorable occasion as he expressed his thoughts in testimony meeting and concluded by bearing testimony in Xhosa. Immediately, as he started to speak in the native language of these dear people there was a rush of excitement and deep emotion. We saw, though our own tears, the tears of many of the 115 who were in attendance. The South African members love their missionaries and we love them!   

While we are fully engage in a very important work, we greatly miss our association with family and friends at home. Our prayers always include an appeal to our Father in Heaven that you will be well, will be protected, and will be worthy of divine guidance. We hope that each one of you will receive this vital blessing.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

We visited Addo National Park where there are several hundred elephants roaming over a large area. We were fortunate to see quite a number of them. 

Elder Allred on the left, then the captain of detectives who came to our aid, then Elder Lane, on far right a captain of the precinct. I told the officers that the elder's mothers would love to see who is helping to protect their sons, and they seemed to take pride in that.   

Easy to see the love the members have for Elder Ivins, and I'm sure the men do too! Many woman worn native attire and face paint to honor him.

Elder Ivins with us on his last Sunday serving in Motherwell. Notice his handmade tie with the Guinea Hens, which are quite common here.

Our Joy is Full

Dear All,

What a wonderful week we have had!  Highlights included a very inspiring and instructive bi-zone conference which was presided over by Elder Stanley G. Ellis of the Seventy.  He is the first counselor in the Southeast Africa Area, and he and his wife toured our mission before his becoming an emeritus General Authority later this year.  He is a master teacher and our time with them was so enjoyable, but just too brief.

Our two zones were blessed by having 22 people baptized this weekend, 10 of whom were from our beloved Motherwell Branch.  It was an amazing Sacrament Meeting yesterday as all 10 were confirmed members of the Lord's church.  It has been a wonderful experience to interview several of these people and learn of their strong faith and of the very positive and dramatic changes which they have made in their lives while preparing for baptism. 

One who was baptized on Saturday is Yamkela Adons.  We spoke of him in early November.  He was the one who was introduced to the church in a taxi by one of our branch members.  He had received a few lessons, and had gained a strong testimony, but then had to move a long distance back to his family home and making it impossible to attend church.  We stayed in touch by phone and missionaries closer to where he lived were able to make occasional visits, but he could not be baptized due to not having access to a church.  Well, he moved back to Motherwell about three weeks ago and was one of the 10 baptized on Saturday.  He bore a strong testimony in church this past Fast Sunday, and then again on Saturday after his baptism.  After being confirmed yesterday, he was approved to receive the Priesthood and was sustained as a counselor in the Young Men's Presidency.  He will be an awesome teacher, leader and example to the youth of the Branch, and to all who know him.    

We must tell you about Lisakhana Billy, who was baptized this past November.  She just turned 13 years of age, is beautiful, very bright, and is an awesome missionary.  She regularly invites friends and family to attend church with her saying: "you don't need to join, but just come and see if you like it."  Well, three of the 10 baptized on Saturday were because of her obvious love of the church and her obvious desire to share the great gift which she has received.  What an example she is to us all!   

Every once in awhile we have the opportunity to take a break, and today is one of those. Elder and Sister Hansen, one of our office couples are coming to stay with us for a couple of nights.  The four of us, along with Elder and Sister Smith, who serve 3 hours from us, are going to visit "Penguin Island" this afternoon.  As the name denotes, there are reportedly huge numbers of penguins to be seen there, along with dolphins and other wildlife.  We'll report later.

Our dear Elder Lloyd is recovering well from the open heart surgery and is being released from the hospital today.  Considering the seriousness of his problem, it is likely that he and his wife will be sent home to Australia before completing their mission.  This will be a sad thing for them and those they serve.  We consider each day that we are able to arise and serve as missionaries is a precious gift.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

The pIcture above is Lisakhana with two cousins who she introduced to the church.

 Elder and Sister Ellis on their mission tour.  We enjoyed our day with them so much. 

Here are the ten new members of the church, in the Motherwell Branch.

This is the preschool where we teach English and numbers most weeks.  This was on Valentines Day when most wore red.  There were 41 attending that day.  Can you imagine spending all day in a 12' X 12' room with that many?!  The two teachers are angels!       

Never a Dull Moment

Dear All,

It has been said that the work of salvation is hastening upon the Earth.  We certainly find that to be the case here in South Africa.  There is no doubt that the Spirit is touching the hearts of the good people here and the work in which we are blessed to be involved certainly is hastening.  While the young Elders do the majority of teaching, we have some outstanding senior couple  missionaries here who are also doing much to further the work.  Two such couples are the Stubbs and the Lloyds.  Both are working in towns with relatively small branches of the church.  They are providing very valuable support to the members and leaders in those areas, and they are finding good success in teaching and baptizing.  The Lloyds had four converts last month and the Stubbs had five.  Way to go senior missionaries!  

Elder and Sister Lloyd live in Grahamstown, which is a one and a half hour drive from Port Elizabeth. Last Friday Elder Lloyd noticed a major reduction in his energy, and his pulse dropped to half the normal rate.  They visited a local doctor who told them to go immediately to an emergency room in Port Elizabeth.  Well, they waited until the next day before so doing.  We met them at the hospital and the first diagnosis, by an ER doctor, was that Elder Lloyd was in need of a pacemaker.  We were all relieved that it wasn't as serious as it might have been.  With it being a weekend, the cardiologist didn't examine him until the next day.  After so doing, the diagnosis changed and the report was that Elder Lloyd had a major blockage and would require open-heart bypass surgery.  That surgery was successfully performed this morning and Elder Lloyd is resting well tonight.  Two amazing things transpired in all this.  First, given the very severe condition of Elder Lloyd's heart, it was a miracle that he did not have a major heart attack before getting to the hospital.  Second, it was amazing to witness the coordination which took place between the cardiologist in Port Elizabeth, the church doctor in Johannesburg (Area headquarters), and those at the church headquarters in Salt Lake City.  Even a member of the Seventy was involved in the decision regarding the care of Elder Lloyd.  The Lord and His church leaders obviously care about the missionaries and great care and attention is given in their times of need.    

Today, we participated in our monthly Mission Leadership Council meeting, which includes all the zone leaders, two assistants to the president, and the Mission Presidency.  This is held via Skype at four different locations, one being at our home with four zone leaders.  It was about a four hour meeting in which many different subjects are discussed.  At the end of the meeting we heard testimonies from those Elders who will be going home prior to our next meeting.  What a wonderful experience it was to hear these young men, and to see the growth, wisdom and strength that each one had obtained.  Elder Greening is one who spoke and is one of the zone leaders here in Port Elizabeth.  He is a big, strong, and good looking young man who has showed little emotion as we have worked with him. Well, there was much emotion shown as he spoke of his love for the people of South Africa and for the gospel.  He told of one of his first transfers, and of telling President Merrill that he didn't want to leave the area he was in, that it would hurt too much to leave the people he loved.  The President told him "good".  "That means you are doing things right."  Well, he certainly showed emotion today as he contemplated going home and leaving these wonderful people.

Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and was chosen to usher in the restoration of all things in this last dispensation.  We know this to be true.  This is the work of the Lord.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

The picture on top is Nanau from the Democratic Republic of Congo.  He was just baptized and will undoubtedly be a strong member and leader in the church.  He has quickly become our good friend and dear brother.    

  

Elder Stubbs with the five wonderful people he and Sister Stubbs taught and prepared for this 

great day

 Nanua and others were baptized in a river about two blocks from the chapel in Grahamstown.

One of our beautiful South African sunsets...weird because the ocean is on the other side!