We had the opportunity to go with the ward to the Columbia South Carolina temple Saturday. The youth and recent converts did baptisms for the dead. The temple is about an hour and half from Augusta. Tim and Annette Jackson rode up with us. The temple is located outside the town of Hopkins, a suburb of Columbia, nestled in a grove of trees. It is very beautiful! We know this temple and all the temples of the Lord throughout the world preform His work of redeeming the living and the dead.
Tim and Annette have been members almost two years and are preparing to go the the temple for their endowments soon.
Elder and Sister Berry leaving the temple. This is the first opportunity we have had to go the the temple since our mission. Last week at zone conference the mission president encouraged us to take time now and then to explore and get to know our mission area. So now we know we can take off from time to time to attend the temple.
Zone Conference last Thursday. What a wonderful day. Three of the zones in our mission were in attendance. This was the third and last conference. The meeting started at 8am with instructions and lasted until 1pm. then we had lunch. The afternoon was filled with skits, fun and games util 4pm, then everyone changed back into suits, had a closing assembly and sent back out to work.
Elders Flake and Caldwell from our district. Look at their plates they wiped them clean.
Some of the senior couples enjoying the lunch the ward in Lexington South Carolina had prepared for us. They treated us like royalty. They decorated the cultural hall, covered the tables with cloth table clothes, and served us the most delicious holiday food! They went the extra mile and it seemed they were honoring the missionaries for their service. Before lunch the mission president invited those who were responsible for the lunch to line up in front of the chapel and the elders were instructed to stand and sing Called to Serve with all their heart. The Elders belted out the hymn and there wasn't a dry eye in the chapel. I have never heard that hymn sung with such boldness and love before. How privileged we are to be part of this and how proud parents would be if they could see their sons and daughters.
This picture and the following pictures are some of the churches in Augusta, Georgia. There is not a street we drive down without a church. Some are huge and beautiful, some modest, old, new and others very small. There are more churches here than gas stations.
This is the First Baptist Church of Augusta. It is huge and very beautiful. Thursday evening we had the opportunity to attend a concert there by the U.S. Army Signal Corps Band stationed at Fort Gordon. It was a big production with music and vocals. SPC Jamison Walker sang O Holy Night and we don't think anyone we have ever heard sung it as well. We attended the concert with the Atkinsons and yes we wore our missionary badges and was very proud to do so.
At zone conference we received training for a new missionary program. Our mission president, President Holm, developed it and with the approval of the missionary depart our mission will pilot it. The program is called "Best Relationships Proselyting". The purpose of this approach is to find investigators, rescue the less active with members, missionaries, and Mormon.org all working together. Everyone knows that if the members give missionaries referrals that through these referrals there are more baptisms with the converts remaining active. The missionaries make appointments with ward members, show film strip encourage members to set up profile on mormon. org and invite members to recommend friends or family members they can send letters to. The ward member selects one of four pre written letters and give missionaries names and addresses. The missionary sends the letters and a week after they are mailed the missionaries go to the home of the investigator or less active member. This has been tried by a zone in our mission and the missionaries involved said they got into nine out of the ten homes they visited and are teaching. This is just a short review of the program and we in our mission feel it is inspired and the missionaries are all fired up ready to begin.
This Wednesday is transfers so tonight is our zone dinner before everyone gets reassigned. We are very sad because we are loosing Elder Flake and Elder Oliver. These elders get under your skin.
So what does Christmas, temples and churches have in common? This morning early we went to the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner tonight. People were already out and about rushing to accomplish their Christmas preparations. Even though things do get rushed from time to time this Christmas season we have the opportunity to teach others about Christ, his humble birth and atonement. We have temples to attend and worship in, learn and renew our spirits that have been dedicated to the Lord. There are many churches in Augusta but there is only one LDS chapel within the city limits but others in surrounding areas. We are thankful to be members of that one true church and are not confused about which of those other churches to attend. We love visiting in recent converts home. Their children love us and hug us and like to sit by us. One family we visit have two little dark skinned boys that are 5 and 6 years old. The five year old hugs us so tight and sits by me and rubs my hand and cheek and when he hugs he puts his cheek right on my check and hugs sooo tight. This is a choice family that is no longer confused as to which church to attend.
We wish you all a MERRY AND WHITE CHRISTMAS!
Love, Elder and Sister Berry
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