Senior Couple journal — New Zealand Hamilton Mission
April 26, 2015 to May 2, 2015
Dear family and friends,
Greetings from a very chilly, damp Taranaki. We have temporarily left eternal spring and entered short-term winter. The winter clothes are now fully in use, but we are happy and loving our service.
1/ Scripture joke of the week: Did the Nephites place great emphasis on mathematics? See answer below.
2/ Church history quiz of the week: One of our church presidents in this dispensation had five different Second Counselors during his service as President of the Church. Can you name this president (extra credit will be awarded if you can name his five Second Counselors)?
3/ Update for the week: We recently enjoyed a wonderful day in Hamilton at a mission conference. We had the privilege of being instructed by Elder Gifford Nielsen, a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy, and his wife. President and Sister Rudd also taught us. We traveled from Taranaki to Hamilton in a caravan, with 18 full-time missionaries traveling in 8 cars. We all stopped at a service station in Te Kuiti for fuel and a treat. As all of us were standing in the parking lot, visiting, a “hippie” van pulled into the lot not far from us, painted in blaring, psychedelic colors. The word “Wicked” was painted in loud colors on the front of the van, and it was decorated with pictures of long-haired party-goers smoking a variety of illegal substances. We all laughed and rolled our eyes, and quickly formed opinions about the yet-unseen occupants of the van. Two very clean-cut young people soon emerged from the van, and they stared at us and our name-badges as we stared back in amazement at them. They went into the service station, and we again laughed about what life style they might have, based on the outrageous van they were driving and its display of sinister vices on its exterior. The couple soon returned and we continued our joking. Quietly and with no fanfare, two of our sweet sister missionaries (Sisters Fisher and Taylor) left our group and walked right over to the van. They introduced themselves to the couple, and had a very pleasant conversation with them. They found out that this couple was from France and that they were touring New Zealand in this borrowed van. They didn’t speak English well, but were grateful for these two beautiful young women for introducing themselves and making them feel a little more welcome in a foreign country. A pass-along card was exchanged as they said good-bye to two new friends. How humbled the rest of us jesters were when we witnessed this act of kindness and Christ-like service, and heard the report of the experience from the sister missionaries. “Do ye unto others as ye would have them do unto you” and “judge not that ye be not judged” were just two of the many relevant scriptural chastisements that entered my heart at the time.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
4/ Answer to the scripture joke: Alma 3:1 states, “…the NUMBER of the slain were not NUMBERED, because of the greatness of their NUMBER…” They apparently thought a lot about numbers!
5/ Answer to the Church history quiz: President Heber J. Grant had five different Second Counselors during his 26 years as President of the Church. In order, these Second Counselors were Charles W. Penrose, Anthony W. Ivins, Charles W. Nibley, J. Reuben Clark Jr., and David O. McKay. If you knew the answer to this quiz question, please apply immediately for employment in the Church historical department.
Much love,
Elder and Sister Taylor
Click here to return to the Senior Couple mission index