Mission Prep in the Middle East

Before I came to Jordan, I wondered how I was going to survive with keeping my enthusiasm for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ under wraps, as we are not allowed to proselyte in the Middle East.

However, I have quickly realized that the Lord provides a way when we provide the faith, preparation, and enthusiasm.

Before I came I made "spiritual" Arabic goals. My first desire was to be able to pray in Arabic, and my second was to be able to bear a ten minute testimony in Arabic. I wanted to be useful in the branch when I got here. However, as I will write about later, most of the people in the branch in Amman are Americans and speak English. They translate sacrament meeting (from English into Arabic) but you don't have to know Arabic to understand.

However, there is a branch up north in Al-Husn that is all in Arabic. I visited the branch before on a Saturday, but last Friday I went up there for church. Each week a group of students goes up to the branch up north, and last Friday was the first week anyone went. I wasn't actually in the group assigned to go, but I volunteered to go and show everyone how to get there. (The desire was also selfish--I really wanted to go back up there to the Arabic branch--I love those people!)

When we got there, President Cotton asked (half-joking) if any of us wanted to give a talk. I immediately volunteered to bear my testimony, so he put me on the program.

In Arabic.

It was a beautiful experience. Finally, my study of the vocabulary in the scriptures and Preach My Gospel is paying off, big time. I told the branch that I felt kind of scared to talk to them, but I do have a testimony, and I wanted to share it with them. I testified of basic truths: that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that we have a prophet on the earth today, that God hears and answers my prayers, and that through the atonement, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we can live with God again. (Side note--I was also able to help in the Primary and Young Womens, which was really fun and a blessing when I realized how much I understand--the church is the same in any language!)

Then, last night as I was cutting my friend's hair at my other friend (Brian Harker)'s apartment, he (Brian) got a call from the Cooks (the missionary service couple here and also the district president for the Middle East) asking if he would come and translate a missionary discussion they had with an Arab Christian that night. (To keep it short, Christians can become LDS in the Middle East, but not Muslims.) (Brian is one of the administrators here and studied in Jordan two years ago and Yemen last year.) Naturally, I asked if I could tag along and was once again pleasantly surprised when I could understand most of what was going on in the lesson. (Get this--the lesson they had for him that night I had just read that morning in Preach My Gospel.)

(Another side note--if you would like to keep this man in your prayers, his name is Samir. I have no doubt that he will be baptized--he has such an enthusiasm for the gospel and I feel he would be a great strength to the branch here in Amman. He has many questions but not about doctrinal matters--mostly he likes to discuss why he loves the Book of Mormon, but he frames it as questions. He is working to stop drinking coffee and tea, too, which are Arab staples.)

And tonight, I am going to another missionary discussion, this time in English (or perhaps Portuguese) with a woman from Brazil who works for the embassy and has been attending the branch here. She lived in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, so the first day I was here we became good friends. I am more than excited to go. If you would like to keep her in your prayers as well, her name is Isabella.

Finally, I have gotten more and more excited to share the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and am waiting impatiently for my mission call. Each time I am able to testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, I am filled with the Spirit. The gospel is true, even and especially in the Middle East!