Library BoM placements (non-English).

12/30/2008. Journal entry.

So as to avoid duplication of effort, here are some things that your Ward Mission Leader might consider doing. If you're not the Ward Mission Leader, check to see if these have been done, and if not, coordinate with your WML.

Your local public library likely has a copy of the English Book of Mormon. If they don't, please donate a hard-cover English copy.

Your local public library might have a Spanish copy of the Book of Mormon. If they don't, pleaes donate a hard-cover Spanish copy.

What other languages does your library cater to? In larger cities, public libraries often carry books in Russian, Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Hindi, Italian, Portuguese, German.

If your town hosts a Japanese auto plant, your local library likely already stocks some Japanese books. I know that is true in at least one Indiana town with a Japanese-owned/managed auto plant.

If your local libary likes to shelve books in non-English languages, ask your librarian if they'd accept a donation of a Book of Mormon in those languages. And if they would, you could purchase them at www.ldscatalog.com, and donate them.

Tagalog at gas station. Sat, Dec 27, 2008.

12/27/2008. 1103. I was on my way to make a purchase at an electronics store, when the Spirit guided me to a gas station along the way. I went in and bought a newspaper. The cashier looked Filipina and spoke with a Philippines accent. She spoke Tagalog as well as English. I offered, and she accepted a "Together Forever" DVD that has a Tagalog audio track, and a Tagalog Book of Mormon.

I forgot to journal this right away, so I forget if she accepted the English Book of Mormon, but I'm thinking she did not.

Regular readers?

12/26/2008. I've noticed from the traffic logs that I have a few regular readers who use their Google news reader or browser bookmarks to view this blog. The two most regular are in Rockford IL (at Swedish American) and another in Denver.

Do I know you? If we know each other, give me a holler at indy-book-slinger at yahoo
(remove the dashes). Thanks.

Christmas DVD's. Tue, Dec 23, 2008.

12/23/2008. 1099. I took my car to the dealer for some work, but they were short-staffed and couldn't get to it today. Before I left, I offered the service rep a copy of the "Joy to the World" DVD. She gladly accepted it.

1100, 1101, 1102. After leaving the dealer, I started on another errand, and felt a spiritual tug to turn down a certain cross-street. I drove past a retirement community complex, and felt another spiritual tug to go there, so I turned around and entered the complex. There were three main buildings or centers, each with a different level of independent or assisted living. I went into each one, and offered a staff person or receptionist a pair of DVDs of "Mr. Krueger's Christmas" and "Joy to the World" and just said I'd like to donate them to their activity center. I described "Joy to the World" as a Nativity DVD with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. And I described "Mr. Krueger's Christmas" as featuring Jimmy Stewart and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

At all three places they gratefully accepted them.

I felt like that satisfied the "assignment" so I went back on my way to do the errand I had in mind.

Ewe investigator to YSA FHE. Mon, Dec 22, 2008

12/22/2008. Follow-up. In order to take the 18 year old female investigator to the YSA (Young Single Adult) branch's Family Home Evening (FHE), I needed another member to chaperone to make it all proper. During the day, I telephoned and invited a 40-ish single member who lives in the same apartment complex as I do, to accompany me. She wasn't able to make it, but suggested her 18 year old daughter go, as her daughter has been bored lately. The daughter is still in high-school, and part of the YW (Young Women) program at our ward, and hasn't been to the YSA branch before.

The investigator lives just a few minutes from us, so I figured it should all be kosher. I would have preferred someone older to go with me, but as long as there were three of us it was cool, and it probably made the investigator feel better to have someone her own age to go with too.

I had some car problems before we started, so we got to the FHE late after the lesson portion, and they were just starting to set up for volleyball.

We walked in, and I introduced the member and the investigator to three of the branch members who were in the foyer. They all went into the gym ("cultural hall" in Mormon-speak), and I went over to the nearby gas station and bought newspaper, soda, and a sandwhich to nosh on and a newspaper to read in the chapel kitchen while they had fun playing volleyball.

Later on, on the ride home, the young member seemed to have gotten the most out of it, and her attitude seemed to have rejuvenated. The investigator seemed happy about the event, but she was pretty reserved, and was still probably overwhelmed just being in the US.

I gave the girls my cell phone for them to call home and tell their families that they were on their way home.

Investigators, Ewe. Sun, Dec 21, 2008

12/21/2008. Follow-up. The man for whom I printed an Ewe New Testament, and his grand-daughter came to church today. They came last week too, but I didn't make it to church last week. They seemed to enjoy the investigators' Sunday School class (Gospel Essentials) taught by one of the missionaries.

The grand-daughter is 18 so I invited her to the Family Home Evening at the YSA (Young Single Adult) branch for tomorrow night, hoping to find a chaperone to accompany us so I could give her a ride. She's been in the United States only a couple months, and hasn't made friends her own age yet, or enrolled in any school, so I figured it would be good for her to meet people her age in a nice setting.

They've also had at least one visit and gospel lesson presentation from the full-time missionaries who delivered the Ewe New Testament.

Next installment in the the story here.

God calls whole societies to account in a type of corporate accounting.

Quote of the week, by john f. in a comment at TimesAndSeasons.org:

Ether is a microcosm of the Nephite civilization’s decline and downfall. Moroni’s inclusion of it reinforces what could be considered the thesis of the Book of Mormon: "For the Lord God hath said that: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence" (2 Nephi 4:4; cf 1 Nephi 2:20). It stands as a second witness that the behavior of individuals, aggregated, can cause widespread societal consequences and that, as uncomfortable as it sounds, God calls whole societies to account in a type of corporate accounting that runs against the grain of current individualistic American notions of autonomous cause and effect.

Kisii. Tue, Dec 9, 2008.

12/09/2008. 1098. On the way to the storehouse, I stopped at a business. To respect the person's privacy, I don't want to give any more details, but I offered someone Kisii and English copies of the Book of Mormon and they accepted.

English DVDs at copy center. Fri, Dec 5, 2008.

12/05/2008. 1097. After paying and taking the copies out to my car, I went back in and gave a couple DVD's to the service rep who waited on me. I gave him a "Joy to the World" DVD and a "Mr. Kreuger's Christmas" DVD, which he accepted.

French, Haitian at copy center. Fri, Dec 5, 2008.

12/05/2008. 1096. I was at a 24-hour copy center to make a print-out of an Ewe New Testament that I had downloaded from the International Bible Society.

While I was waiting, another customer came in who spoke with an accent. I was using their free 3-hole paper punch as he was about to leave, and I struck up a conversation by asking him where he was from. He said Haiti. I asked if he spoke Haitian Creole and he said yes. I asked if he spoke French too, and he said yes. I offered, and he agreed to receive, free copies of books from my church in Haitian, French, and English. He waited inside, while I went out to my car and retrieved them. He gratefully accepted them, and I also gave him a couple DVD's, Finding Faith in Christ, and The Testaments, which also have French audio tracks. I explained that we believe in both the Bible, and in the Book of Mormon. He asked where the church was, and I showed him the list of chapels that I put in the books, and pointed out my ward.

Follow-up, Ewe. Fri, Dec 5, 2008.

12/05/2008. Follow-up. I received a phone call from a man with whom I spoke while in line at a Kroger grocery store over a year ago. I forget what all I gave him back then. On the phone, he said he was looking for an Ewe bible. I said I'd try to help him out, and get back with him. He gave me his name and address.

I found an Ewe New Testament online here as 27 PDF files. There does seem to be a print version in existence, but it was not available.

There is also a free audio Bible in Ewe, but the distributor wants you to install their special software in order to download it. I'm very skeptical of that, and don't want to install that kind of software out of fear it may contain a computer virus. You should not have to install special software in order to download an audio or MP3 file. Something's fishy there.

So I downloaded the PDF files. They are double-spaced, and not efficiently typeset, as they are intended for reading on a computer, not for printing out. Printing them out would be over 800 pages. Even duplexing (double-sided printing) would be 400 sheets of paper.

So I decided they needed to be "two up" and duplexed, which would reduce it to 200 sheets of paper. The paper would be held to be read in landscape mode, with 2 virtual pages on each side of the sheet, and printing on both sides of the sheet.

I first went to Staples, and they said they could not reformat it for me, that they could only print it as it was in the file. The best they could do would be double-sided printing, and get it down to 400 sheets.

Later, I decided to go to FedEx Kinko's and see if their printers were smart enough to be set to do "2 up" printing (and duplexing) without having to reformat the files.

I was helped by a very knowledgeable customer-service rep at a 24-hour store, and he was able to do it. So we got it down to a little over 200 pages, I 3-hole punched it, and bought a binder.

On the way home, I stopped at the missionaries apartment. The man's address was in our ward. I gave the missionaries the Ewe New Testament printout, a CD with the Ewe New Testament PDF files on it, an Ewe copy of the Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlet, Twi and English copies of the Book of Mormon.

The next day, I got a call back from the missionaries reporting that they met with the man, gave him the material, and had scheduled an appointment to meet with him again.

More follow-up here.

Romanian at Post Office. Thu, Dec 4, 2008.

12/04/2008. 1095. I met a lady and her teenage daughter at the Post Office. I offered, and she accepted, Romanian and English copies of the Book of Mormon, and a couple DVD's, but I forget which titles. They waited outside while I retrieved the material from my car, and I presented it right there in the parking lot.

Chinese, declined at restaurant. Tue, Dec 2, 2008.

12/02/2008. 1094. After volunteering at the storehouse, had dinner at a Chinese restaurant, late evening, I struck up a conversation with a member of the owner's family in the dining area. I was the only customer there. She spoke and understood fluent Mandarin, but didn't read it, growing up here in the US. I offered a video, but she was hestitant, didn't say yes or no, so I didn't push. I didn't see the parents, so I'll try offering something to them next time.