ELDER TERRY'S SNAPSHOT

Our mission here is somewhat different than other senior missionary couples.  Most couples are assigned a specific ward or branch where they teach Temple Preparation or some other assignment within that ward.  For Sister Terry and I we get to visit a different Ward or Branch every Sunday to provide training – usually unannounced.  Right after Sacrament Meeting I round-up all the Clerks I can find and spend an hour or two providing them with hands-on technology training while Sister Terry works with the Relief Society and Adult Literacy.  We have had some of our most rewarding experiences during these Sunday training visits. 

I've meet with Clerks who have been keeping paper records for months because they don't have the technical skills to resolve a virus problem or some other PC issue.  I've seen Clerks who have been without network connections for months – and every Sunday they unplug their Branch PC and transport it miles to another unit where they can get a network connection to upload their tithe and fast offering records.  When I'm able to teach them how to remove the virus or fix their network connection, they are so grateful!  Because most meetinghouse network connections are less than 1 Mbps they cannot effectively access the technical training content found on our usual LDS sites.   Because of that I usually leave them with a DVD that contains training and informational material to assist them in their training after I am gone.    (You can see one of my classes in the attached photo). 

It seems to me that all Church members here have an extra measure of spirituality that drives them to magnify their callings beyond what I've experienced in the US.  They absolutely thirst for that knowledge and are always so grateful to have information that will help them in that regard.  With very little of the technology we take for granted in the US, they continue to achieve extraordinary growth and accomplish so much with so little!   

Life can be hard here, but when Sister Terry and I see how our efforts change the lives of so many it just makes all that "hard" fade away!