19 July 2009 – Sunday

I had a number of surprises today and they were almost all good. The most difficult part of the day was getting up and going. Since we need to be in Esikhawini  before 8:00 we need to get going before 6:00.

We made it easily today and I got to go to PEC while Mary practiced some music for the roadshow. Unfortunately brother Nkosi  and brother Mavundla were not there but president Malinga held a short but good meeting. They are still learning how to be effective in their PEC and so I will spend some time this week or next helping him prepare agendas. After PEC the presidency met and came up with a first draft for home teaching. Hopefully by next week it will be available for everyone.

Sacrament had average attendance and brother Mathalane gave an excellent talk as his mission report. I wish he had worked in a few more spiritual experiences so the young men would know how great his mission was and how it changed his life. However ,since he was called to be the YM President and to teach the Aaronic Priesthood he will have a number of opportunities to talk about his mission.

There was no teacher for Sunday School so president Nyawo stepped in an chose to have a lesson on agency. I made a couple of comments but as the lesson was going on I kept thinking about the idea of agency as ‘acting and not being acted upon’ which is mentioned in the scriptures. I decided to look it up and found that it was in 2 Nephi 26 but verses 25 to 29 gives the whole concept.

I do not know how many times I have read this scripture but this time as I read in verse 26 “And the Messiah cometh in the fullness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because they are redeemed from the fall, they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.”

I had never considered that without the atonement in the eternities there would be no difference between those who chose good and those who chose evil. The atonement made free moral agency eternally meaningful. So while we had agency from the beginning, by fulfilling justice Christ’s atonement gave our actions and choices meaningful. After Sunday School I shared this idea with Elder Mbithi and he felt the same as I did. There is much to ponder in this scripture.

When it was time for Priesthood, we found that there was no teacher for either the AP or MP so brother Nyawo taught the AP and I took the MP. Of course I had no lesson planned and a quick look through the PH lessons did not bring any inspiration so I just started talking about what responsibilities came with accepting the Priesthood and callings. As promised the words just came to me and I could see and feel that everyone was being edified. Even the investigator who has a baptism date in early August seemed to be caught up in what we were discussing. It was a very special time for me.

After the block, Mary played for choir practice and then gave her piano lessons. We really need keyboards for any real progress to be made. Hopefully we will be able to get power sources for the new keyboard and the one that is at the Nseleni elders boarding.

When we got home, I did have a few minutes of panic. Since the garage door does not open, we have had to use the front door. When I looked through my pocket for the keys I could not find them. I found three other sets of keys but not the three I really needed. Luckily for some reason I had taken the back door keys so we were able to get into the house.

Once inside I emptied every pocket in my pants, coat and shirt and still no front door keys. I was almost ready to head back to Esikhawini and see if I had dropped them somewhere when I took other things out of my pocket. But before I did that, I started searching the car. The keys had fallen out of my pocket and were down between the seat and the console but on Mary’s side. So the problem was solved with only a few minutes of distress.

Mary spent most of the rest of the afternoon finishing getting things ready for First Night – that is the first Sunday dinner for the elders after transfers. She had started preparing on Saturday so the spaghetti sauce was already cooked, but she still had other things to do. I was responsible for cleaning house and getting the garlic bread ready.

Although the elders arrived a little later than usual the dinner went well and no one went away hungry. In fact they did not even eat all the brownies and ice cream. Anytime the elders go home with food left over, the dinner is a success.

After dinner the Zone Leaders – elder Richey and elder Mbithi –sent in their report and the other elders sat around and talked. Elders Hoosier  and Torgereson played a game of chess that they were not able to finish. I think the two new elders- elder Musemare and elder Muthoka – seemed to enjoy themselves. I commented to elder Bartholomew how just a few days after they came to the area and had new companions that they seemed to fit right in. It is another of the amazing features of missionary service.