This is the talk I gave in church last Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020
Dobre Dan! This means “Good afternoon,” in
Croatian. I can't say the R's properly. My old tongue and brain just can't do it, although I have tried and tried. Fortunately, we are not REQUIRED to learn Croatian.
Sister Ashurst and I have
been assigned to the Adriatic North Mission as Assistant Area Auditors , and as Member and Leader
Support Missionaries.
A couple of weeks
ago we were in Utah and were invited to the Church Office Building to meet with
the church auditors and receive council and training. One of the first things they told us was,
“Bro. and Sis. Ashurst, you have been called as Assistant Area Auditors. You have equal authority and responsibility
to conduct and manage the audits of the church units in the Adriatic North
Mission.” This answered a question I had
had. Whether it was a priesthood calling,
or a calling under direction of the priesthood.
We will both function under the direction of our priesthood leaders.
Auditing is not so much about catching
wrong-doers. Many of the branch
presidents and branch financial clerks are 19 and 20 year-old missionaries. Our auditing function will be about
discovering opportunities for teaching, supporting, and strengthening the
branch leaders, whatever their age. In a
few cases we might have to report serious problems to our priesthood leaders,
but it is not our job to confront, or address, or solve those problems.
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We
requested to be assigned to the Adriatic North Mission. Liz’s father was born in Croatia, and our
family has many Croatian traditions that we follow. I personally, have been greatly influenced by
her father in the way he approached his church and family
responsibilities.
He
was determined that his children and grandchildren would remain close to each
other, so that we would be formed as an eternal family here, as well as in
eternity. We follow his example in
holding week-long reunions of our entire family every three years. We make sure everybody attends, and
participates. We cook and eat meals
together. We have fun activities, but we
leave time for visiting and bonding with each other, too. One of the highlights of every reunion is the
day we roast a lamb over a charcoal fire in the Croatian style, which takes
almost all day. The men cook the
lamb. Everybody else prepares the
traditional foods, such as pogacha, Orignacha, Pedrobit, and Italian-style
potato salad. But we pass on the sarma
that her father loved.
People ask us if
it is safe to be in the Adriatic area.
The State Department says it is as safe to live in Croatia as it is to
live here, in spite of the civil war of 25 years ago. But really, why should we worry about
that? When Alma the Younger and the sons
of Mosiah wanted to go to the Lamanites, was their safety the issue? Well, yes, it was. But it was not the big issue. In Mosiah 28, we read about their request to
King Mosiah.
They
asked, QUOTE “that they might impart the
word of God to their brethren, the Lamanites—
2 aThat perhaps
they might bring them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and convince them
of the iniquity of their fathers; and that perhaps they might cure them of
their bhatred towards
the Nephites, that they might also be brought to rejoice in the Lord their God,
that they might become friendly to one another, and that there should be no
more contentions in all the land which the Lord their God had given them.” UNQUOTE
In the December
1991 Ensign, Elder Russell M. Nelson
reported on his service in Europe, including a section about Yugoslavia. Please note that the former Yugoslavia is now
six, separate countries, five of which are the countries which comprise the
Adriatic North Mission. The civil strife
that led to the dissolving of Yugoslavia was about to become a civil war as he
gave this report:
QUOTE: “President Monson dedicated this land on 31 October 1985,
just prior to his call to the First Presidency. My first visit to that country
as a Church leader was in April 1987. Elder Ringger and I met with governmental
directors of religious affairs for Serbia and Croatia, as well as for
Yugoslavia. Our interpreter was Kresimir Cosic, once a star basketball player
for Brigham Young University. Brother Cosic had become a national sports hero
in Yugoslavia. Governmental officials
confessed that they weren’t particularly eager to meet with leaders of the
“Mormon” Church, but they were excited to meet Brother Cosic, whom they admired
and watched regularly on television.
We now have a legally recognized chapel in Zagreb, and
congregations in other major cities….. Earnestly we pray for peaceful
resolution of the civil discord that besets this nation at the present time. So
many choice souls reside in this beautiful land.” UNQUOTE
Yes, many choice
souls do reside in that land. The church
is still small in the Adriatic North Mission, but it is growing and we want to
help it grow more. The church now owns
two chapels in the Mission and there are almost 20 organized units, most of
which meet in rented buildings, and there are about 1400 members. There are 64 proselyting missionaries in the
mission and last year’s mission goal for convert baptisms was 64. They exceeded that goal.
We have been
assigned to support a branch in Croatia.
But Sister Ashurst and I feel very blessed to have our 2nd
missionary assignment that will allow us to travel throughout the mission as we
perform the branch and district audits.
We will always have translators with us as we perform our duties, and we
are thrilled to be able to meet and visit with member leaders in all five
countries in the mission. The missionary
department instructed us to get a “large” passport book, because we will be getting
stamps in our books as we cross each border.
I hope we can fill up those large books.
Returning
to Alma and the Sons of Mosiah,
QUOTE
“And king Mosiah went and ainquired of the
Lord if he should let his sons go up among the Lamanites to preach the word.
7 And
the Lord said unto Mosiah: Let them go up, for many shall believe on their
words, and they shall have eternal life; and I will adeliver thy
sons out of the hands of the Lamanites.
8 And
it came to pass that Mosiah granted that they might go and do according to
their request.” UNQUOTE
We too, will go, and do.
This last week we
spoke with President Melonakos and his wife about our mission, what we needed
to bring, and some extra assignments they want us to accept. We asked them if there was anything we could
bring for them. Their answer was, “More
senior couples”. We said we would try.
We ask all of you
to visit churchofjesuschrist.org/seniormissionaries and look at the list of
opportunities. No matter your age, it is
an eye-opening list. If you are a
senior, please consider applying.
And finally: I ask that all of you will join us in praying for the people of the Adriatic
North Mission. That they can forgive their fellow men of past
offenses, that they can love one another, and that they may feel the spirit
whispering the truths of the gospel to them.
And I say this…
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