Our Cup Runneth Over: A VISIONARY PEOPLE 20 April 2016

"And it came to pass that my father spake unto her, saying: I know that I am a visionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a vision, I should not have known the goodness of God.." 1 Nephi 4:5
Lehi was a visionary man. If he hadn't been think of how the history of the world would have been different.
Joseph Smith was a visionary man. Not only the First Vision where he saw and talked to God and His son, Jesus Christ, but numerous others throughout his life. He remarked late in his life, "It is my meditation all the day and more than my meat and drink to know how I shall make the saints of God to comprehend the visions that roll like an overflowing surge, before my mind." (WJS, p. 196) Joseph Smith had 76 visitations. Truly, a visionary man.
The longer we spend in Africa the more we realize what a visionary people the Africans are. Most people we interview have had dreams that have witnessed to them of the truthfulness of the gospel or has directed them to the church or paved the way they should take in their lives. What makes a group of people so visionary? I would love to have the answer to that one. Even the king in Swaziland many years ago had a dream of a white man bringing a book to his people. So when the missionaries from Europe showed up with the Bible, the king and his people immediately grasped onto Christianity. A visionary people.

I am going to share some stories that substantiates this truth.

JANET

Meet Janet, a member of the Adyel Branch in Lira Uganda as shared with us in our oral interview with Elder Bernell and Sister RaNae Taylor. "We met Janet while performing an audit of church records in Lira. I noticed that she paid tithing weekly and was very impressed with her apparent faithfulness in the Church. Before leaving town, we stopped to meet her in her thriving shoe shop downtown. Here is her beautiful testimony.

"I joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints seven years ago. I met the missionaries who began to teach me the restored Gospel. My husband chose not to hear their message.

About this time, my infant son became seriously ill. I was afraid he might even die. The missionaries had taught me about prayer, so I prayed for my baby. I felt an impression to toss him in the air three times, which I did, catching him each time.(My note: Doesn't this sound like the story in the Bible of washing in the river seven times?) Then I took him to the hospital for treatment. By the time we got to the hospital, my baby was fully recovered and we were sent back home. This was a first experience with being guided by the Spirit.

Later, the Elders taught me about fasting and prayer and paying my tithes. I fasted and prayed for two days and nights without stopping. At the end of this experience, I had a most curious dream. I saw myself in a shop down town and doing very well. At that time, I did not have a business or had I even thought about owning one. In the dream, as I marveled at the healthy business, a voice came to me which said: “Be sure to pay a full tithe on this business.” Then I woke up.

Some time after my baptism, I started selling shoes along the roadside here in Lira. I paid my tithing every time I got money. The business grew step by step. Within not long, I had enough money to rent this shop I am in. Today, my business does very well. I go to Kampala often for more inventory. When I’m coming back home on the bus, I calculate how much my shoes cost, along with my rent. Then I figure my tithing. I pay my tithing every Sunday. I have been richly blessed by paying my tithing. I have a strong testimony in God’s blessings when we do what He asks. I will be forever grateful for my membership in this true Church, and for impressions and dreams that have saved my son and blessed us so abundantly."

"Perhaps the most remarkable thing about this sweet, beautiful Sister is how she glows. We could see how the Gospel has lighted her from the inside out. We felt a reverence while sitting in her shoe shop and hearing her amazing testimony."

MARY LETSEBE NDABA

We interviewed Mary Letsebe Ndaba from Alexandra, South Africa on 14 April and what an amazing story she shared with us. But for this segment, I am just going to relate part of her interview about a dream that she had. While being taught by the missionaries, she believed immediately all that they were teaching her except for the Joseph Smith story. "But I was still finding it so difficult about Joseph Smith but whatever they were teaching me was perfect except for Joseph Smith. I always complain to myself..I had no one to talk to anyway so I can get this clear, so someone can take my head and understand about this Joseph Smith. And this is the thing that I never, ever wanted to share with anyone. They will think that I am making up the story. My husband was working late shift. So about 2:00, I was suppose to wake up so I could go fetch him from work. So that day, I opened my eyes, they became so heavy into sleeping. I fell asleep and as I fell asleep, I opened my eyes and it was like I can feel this heavy thing over me that is pushing me to sleep and a loud voice went like, "This is my Son, Hear Him." And I just jumped out of the bed. "This is my Son, Hear Him." Ummm. You know I was so shocked. But "This is my Son, Hear Him". I do hear the word of God. I do believe in Jesus Christ. "This is my Son, Hear Him" and I started crying. Then I said, "Is it God? Is it Jesus Christ? That is telling me I must hear Joseph Smith." She was the first one baptized in Alexandra (4 July 2002) and has been a faithful servant ever since.

EDOUARD NGINDU

Eduoard Ngindu from Kananga, DRC, never expected to become a member of the Church. However, his life changed in 1987. He met a man named Mutshipai Kayembe who was a leader of some kind of church. He was holding an intriguing blue book. The book was handed to him and he read the title: "The Book Of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ." He looked through the title page and the testimonies of the three and eight witnesses and decided it was an American book and did not want to take it. Mr. Kayembe said with great energy, "Guard this book and read it in full. It is written in French and I cannot read it, but I know it is the work of God. If you read it, it will enrich you and your family." Eduoard says, "I wrote him off as a fool and threw the book in his face and turned to walk away. After I had walked two steps he called me and said, 'Eduoard, I beg you to take this book. I promise you will receive great blessings from it."
"Suddenly a peaceful feeling enveloped me. Ashamed, I returned and accepted the book. That night I and my family knelt in prayer and asked the Lord to help us understand the Book of Mormon." During the night he had a dream where he was visited by a personage who said, "The book you have is not an invention of Americans as you think. It is the word of God and is intended for the whole world. If you believe its message you will be happy in your life and you will discover God's purpose for mankind. Your life will change." He couldn't sleep and read the book still wondering what it all meant.
He and his family attended church and felt the warmth of the members. He was given lots of documents to read and being an avid reader he devoured them. His testimony grew and he and his family were baptized, and he went on to serve as branch president and stake president. And he is now our DRC Kananga Church History Adviser.

THOMAS MOSAPI

We first met Thomas Mosapi in a session in the Johannesburg Temple. There was something about him that radiates goodness. We later had the opportunity to talk to him. Here is his story:

Thomas Mosapi begins his history of his life with a dream. It occurred in 1968, when Thomas was twenty-five and in jail. He had been unjustly convicted of theft. His dream came as a gentle grace from above during a time when Thomas felt abandoned by everyone~~not only the political system, but those whom he thought to be his friends. He was life Job, downcast and alone. But also like Job, Thomas enjoyed communication from above in the midst of his trial. He dreamed that he was in a hall. He saw chairs set up but no furniture. And then he saw a picture of Christ hanging on the cross. He saw people, white and black, running towards the picture. He himself was one of the people running towards it. When he woke he was puzzled. What did the dream mean? No one could interpret it for him.
Fast forward ten years later. Thomas is out of jail and living in Soweto, a black township adjoining Johannesburg. A few years earlier, the white ruling class of South Africa announced that English would no longer be the language of instruction in public schools. Blacks would learn Afrikaans, submitting to the white ruling class. In response to the change, Africans took to the streets to express their displeasure. They picketed. They marched. They kept their children home from school. And then things go violent. The initially peaceful protests changed when a white police force in Soweto, trying to reign in protesters, fired into a crowd, killing a young boy. Blacks fought back. They bombed schools. They murdered some white police. Soweto became a war zone.
The violence alarmed peace-loving people like Thomas Mosapi. He saw the young children in his neighborhood becoming violent extremists. He wanted to get them out of Soweto. thomas started working with an underground movement that secretly transported South African children across the border into Botswana. The South African government soon became aware of his activities. He was tipped off by a detective friend that his life was in danger. At that time, African dissidents often disappeared, secretly murdered. In 1978, thomas slipped across the border into Botswana after bidding farewell to his wife and young children in Soweto. For the next fifteen years, he lived in exile, seeing his family only on rare occasions when they were able to sneak across the border and visit him.
By 1993, Thomas started preparing to return home. Soweto had calmed down, children were learning English again in the schools, Mandela had been released from prison, and things were looking up for South Africa. As he prepared to return home, Thomas was in the Botswana passport office when he noticed two missionaries standing not far away dressed in white shirts and ties. He had a burning desire to know what their name tags said. Thomas approached them. They told him they were missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They asked him if he would like to come to one of their worship services. His first Sunday in church, which was held in the home of one of the members, one of the speakers mentioned the Word of Wisdom. It piqued Thomas; interest. He hated liquor, and he thought cigarettes were a waste. The missionaries gave him a Book of Mormon, but he couldn't get interested in it. He was about to leave the church. But the missionaries were persistent. They asked him to pray about what he was reading. He promised them he would. One night he prayed earnestly to know if the Book of Mormon was what it proclaimed to be. After prayer he retired for bed. That night he had a dream. A person appeared and called him by name.

"Thomas Mosapi?"

"Yes, sir." Thomas answered.

"The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ."

The next morning, Thomas found the missionaries and asked for baptism.

Thirty years after his first dream, church leaders started building a new meeting house in Soweto. Thomas was asked to be the bishop of the congregation. As he walked up to the construction site for the first time, looking out onto the rising walls, he recognized the building as the same hall, without furniture, that he had seen in his dream of 1968. It was a sign of God's mercy to him over the course of his life. He had had the dream during a time when he was unjustly incarcerated. God had watched over him, leading him to Botswana, and out again.

Thomas is now a sealer in the Johannesburg temple and has done all the work for his ancestors. Both his mother and father have appeared to him in vision, since their deaths, to convey their approval of his temple work for them. His mother came singing beautiful hymns. About a year ago, Thomas had his right leg amputated just below the kneecap. He is a diabetic and the blood flow couldn't get to his leg. He is now in a wheelchair, but still fulfills all his responsibilities in the church and the temple. He believes that the people he saw, black and white, running to Christ represents the people that he seals together in the temple for time and all eternity. Another visionary man!