A
sister missionary told the story of three men she met during a district
conference in Africa. They came from an isolated village far away in
the bush where the Church had not yet been organized but where there
were 15 faithful members and almost 20 investigators. For over two weeks
these men had walked on foot, traveling more than 300 miles (480 km)
over paths rendered muddy by the rainy season, so they could attend the
conference and bring the tithes from the members of their group. They
planned to stay for an entire week so they could enjoy the privilege of
partaking of the sacrament
the following Sunday and then hoped to set out on the return trip
carrying boxes filled with copies of the Book of Mormon on their heads
to give to the people of their village.
The
missionary testified how touched she was by the sense of wonder these
brethren displayed and by their wholehearted sacrifices to obtain things
that for her had always been readily available.
She
wondered: “If I got up one Sunday morning in Arizona and found that my
car wasn’t working, would I walk to my church only a few blocks away
from home? Or would I just stay home because it was too far or because
it was raining?”
(Adapted from Lorraine Bird Jameson, “The Giants of Kinkondja” (article
on Africa Southeast Area website, 2009);
web.archive.org/web/20101210013757/http:/www.lds.co.za/index.php/news-a-events/news/aseanews/91-the-giants-of-kinkondja...a village in the DR Congo)
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