Ewe, French, at store. Sat, Nov 12, 2011.

11/12/2011. 1300. I was at a checkout counter of a large national chain. The cashier had a name tag indicating an African name, and he spoke with an accent. I asked if he spoke French (Parlez vous francais?), and he said yes, and asked how I guessed. I said because of his name-tag and his accent, and many African speak French.

He was from Togo, so I asked if he knew so-and-so, the guy from Togo (and Ghana) who joined the church in our ward a couple years ago. And he did know him and his family.

We talked about languages and church material, and he was open to receiving something. So after paying I went out to my car and retrieved a couple DVD's, and Ewe and English copies of the Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlet. I went back in and presented them to him (there was no one in his check-out line at the time). He was pleasantly surprised to see the Ewe pamphlet, and he graciously accepted the material.

French, Wolof at gas station. Mon, Nov 7, 2011.

11/7/2011. 1298. I was driving home, and there was a gas station on the corner on the other side of the street. I was planning on going straight through the intersection, but I received a strong prompting to stop at the gas station, so I checked to see that there was no traffic to the left and in back of me, and made a last-second left turn and pulled in.

I bought a cup of hot chocolate. The other cashier spoke with a heavy accent, so after I paid I went over to him and asked where he was from. He was from Senegal and spoke French and Wolof. I offered him some church material in French and Wolof, and he agreed to receive them.

I went out to my car and dug around a while, but I couldn't find a French Book of Mormon. But I did have a Wolof Gospel Fundamentals, a French Liahona magazine (the international edition of the Ensign), and a "Together Forever" DVD that has a French audio track. I went back in and present them to him, and he graciously accepted them. I mentioned that there were phone numbers in there (on the flyers) that he could call if he wanted more information.

French at gas station. Sat, Oct 1, 2011.

10/01/2011. 1295. Between conference sessions, on my way to lunch, I stopped at a gas station to visit a friend who worked there. He wasn't there, but the cashier on duty knew him, and told me when he'd be there.

The cashier was from Benin, and spoke French and Fon, and a couple other languages in addition to English. I was out of stock of the Fon Gospel Fundamentals, but I offered him a French Book of Mormon, and a multi-lingual "Together Forever" DVD which he gratefully accepted.

The next day, while at the chapel to watch conference, I gave a copy of the Fon translation of the Joseph Smith testimony pamphlet to the missionaries for that area, and asked them to deliver it.

French DVDs at laundromat. Sat, Jul 30, 2011.

07/30/2011. 1290. I met a man at the laundromat who was from Niger. He spoke English, French, Hausa, and Germa. He accepted my offer of the Together Forever and Special Witnesses of Christ DVDs that have French audio tracks.

French at gas station. Thu, Jun 2, 2011.

06/02/2011. 1283. I was on an errand to another part of town and stopped for gas at a gas station that I haven't been to in a while. I went in to pre-pay. The cashier spoke with an accent so, after paying I asked where he was from. He said Niger. I asked if he spoke a certain language from there, and he said no, but he did speak French, and another language that I hadn't heard of before.

I offered him a free book and video in French from church and he agreed to receive them. So after I put gas in the car, I brought back in a French Book of Mormon, and a DVD of "Together Forever" that has a French audio track.

There was no one in the check-out line when I went back in, so I presented the material to him and he gratefully received them. He said he had seen book before but hadn't read it. I didn't offer him an English copy, but I showed him the phone numbers on the flyer and card inside that he could call to get an English copy.

French/Wolof at gas station. Tue, Dec 21, 2010.

12/21/2010. Missed op? - I was on the other side of town running errands. As I turned at an intersection, I felt inspired to stop at a drug store next to a gas station. I bought something. Nothing happened at the drug store, but maybe I was supposed to talk to the cashier. She had a bright and shiny look to her, like she knew the Savior. Later I thought that I could have asked her what church she went to, and if she asked why I asked, I could have said something like "You have a glow or shine to you that says you know Jesus." Some may think that's weird, but I'm sure it was true.

12/21/2010. 1265. Before I got back in my car, I felt inspired to stop at the gas station next door, so I walked over there, and bought something. One of the employees looked African, but he was busy, so I asked the cashier if she knew where he was from, and she said Senegal. So I went out to my car and retrieved Wolof copies of Gospel Fundamentals and the Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlet, a French Book of Mormon, and a "Together Forever" DVD that has a french audio track. I forget if I included English copies of the books as well.

When I went back in, the Senegalese employee was accessible so I struck up a conversation with him by asking if he spoke French and Wolof, and he did. I offered the material and he very graciously and gratefully accepted it all.

French at gas station. Sat, Aug 28, 2010.

08/28/2010. 1249. I was on my way home from doing laundry. A new gas station had opened up on the route that I had chosen to drive home. The idea occurred to me to stop and get a newspaper. I don't know if it was a spiritual prompting or not.

Anyway, the cashier was a black man who spoke with a heavy accent. So after I paid, I took a guess and asked "Parlez vous francais?" He said yes, or maybe "oui". I asked where he was originally from, and he said Niger.

I didn't offer anything at the time, but when I got back to my car, I dug out a Together Forever DVD (that has a French audio track), and an old copy of a French Liahona magazine, and took them back in.

I got back in line, and when it was my turn, I asked if he'd like a free DVD in French and a free magazine in French from my church. He was very excited about them, and enthusiastically greed to receive them. I asked if he was Muslim, since most people from Niger are Muslim. He said yes. So I made sure he knew it was Christian material and if he still wanted them, and he said no problem. He also spoke Hausa, but when I offered him a Hausa copy of the Sunday school manual (Gospel Fundamentals), he said he didn't read Hausa, just spoke it.

I don't know why I didn't offer a French Book of Mormon, but since I'm regularly in that area (about once a week) I should have opportunity to follow up.

Road Trip. Sat, Nov 21, 2009.

Road trip to Florida.

11/21/2009. 1213. In Georgia Getting ready to leave the motel. Thai/English BoM and the "The Restoration" DVD (with Thai audio track) to guy in motel parking lot, he was changing or adding oil. Joe, from Bloomington Indiana.

11/21/2009. 1214. In Florida. Chinese/English Book of Mormon at lunch, to a father/son at their restaurant. Felt it was inspired.

11/21/2009. I felt inspired to stop at this shopping center. Went to a certain restaurant and got something quick, but didn't make any offers.

11/21/2009. 1215. At another restaurant at the same shopping center, went to a Chinese restaurant for a snack. The cashier accepted one of the DVD's with a Chinese audio track but she declined the Book of Mormon.

11/21/2009. 1216. I arrived in my destination city. That evening, as I was shopping at a bookstore, I saw an Asian man studying at one of the tables. I took a chance and struck up a conversation with him. I offered and he accepted a Chinese Simplified script and an English Book of Mormon, and a Heavenly Father's Plan DVD.

11/21/2009. 1217. Later, I bought something at the local Wal-Mart. My cashier spoke French and Haitian Creole. I offered, and she accepted copies of the Book of Mormon in those languages plus English.

11/21/2009. 1218. As I went back in with those books, and got in line again at her cash register, the people head of me were speaking Albanian. But they politely declined to receive the Book of Momron in Albanian.

11/21/2009. 1219. Later I stopped at a gas station, and offered the English-speaking cashier a Book of Mormon, but she politely declined.

Wolof and French at store. Tue, Sep 8, 2009.

09/08/2009. 1188. While on my way to a restaurant, I discovered an African grocery store that I hadn't been to before. I stopped in to browse and buy something. Two of the employees were from Senegal. They accepted my offer of church material in Wolof. But when I went out to the car, I found out I hadn't put those boxes back in the car after taking them out to make room for passengers earlier in the week.

But I still had my case of Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlets. One man accepted Wolof and English copies of that pamphlet. The other guy, with whom I spoke later, accepted copies of the same, plus a French and an English Book of Mormon, and a "Finding Faith in Christ" DVD that has a French audio track.

French, Wolof at store. Wed, Aug 26, 2009.

08/26/2009. 1184. I went to a store for some photo-processing. The machine that reads your storage media was out of order, but the employee who helped me spoke with an accent, and seemed like he was from Africa. So I asked him if he spoke French. He said yes, so I asked where he was from, and he said Senegal. So I asked him if he also spoke Wolof, which he did.

I said that my church has free material in Wolof if he'd like to see it, and he was interested. He wanted to teach his American wife some Wolof. So I went to the car and got Wolof and English copies of Gospel Fundamentals, Wolof and English copies of the Joseph Smith testimony pamphlet, French and English copies of the Book of Mormon, and a multi-lingual DVD of "Together Forever" which has a French audio track.

He wasn't all that excited about them, but he thought his wife would be interested.

French to missionaries. Tue, Aug 25, 2009.

08/25/2009. Journal Entry. This morning, the ward's full-time missionaries called to request a French Book of Mormon to give another set of elders in their zone during their transfer meeting tomorrow. Later in the evening, I took them a copy after they had returned for the evening. I had forgotten about it, and they called to remind me. Fortunately, I was close by and could easily go over before their lights-out time.

The senior companion is a district leader. His junior companion is getting transferred tomorrow and will be replaced by a "greenie" fresh from the Missionary Training Center.

French DVDs and Liahona at store. Sun, Aug 9, 2009.

08/09/2009. 1181. I was taking the recent convert couple back home after church. The wife had lost an important item, so we went to the store near where she thought she lost it while getting into a car. She ended up having a conversation with someone she knew, and I was just standing around, so I started talking to a family member of the other lady. We talked about languages, so I offered her some church material in French, one of her languages. She agreed to receive them, so I went out to the car and retrieved a "Together Forever" DVD and an "Introduction to the Church" DVD, and a French Liahona magazine, which she gratefully accepted.

French, Arabic at restaurant. Thu, Jun 4, 2009

06/04/2009. 1156. I took our African investigator to a local restaurant. I wasn't sure what languages they spoke at the restaurant, so I only took in a couple copies of the French Liahona magazine. They weren't too busy, so the owner had time to chat with us. He was from a country near where the investigator is from, and spoke English, French, Arabic, and a local/regional dialect.

He seemed enthusiastic about the magazines, so I offered him more stuff. He agreed, so I went out to the car and retrieved an Arabic copy and a French copy of the Book of Mormon, and a French video of "Finding Faith in Christ", which he graciously accepted.

The food was very good, so I'm sure I'll be back to follow up.

French at restaurant. Fri, May 22, 2009.

05/22/2009. 1146. I hadn't planned on making this lunch into a placement opportunity. I was out doing an errand and I just wanted to have lunch at a place where I liked the food. It's a Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean kind of place. I didn't take anything in with me except a Spanish Liahona to read myself.

During our conversation I learned that the lady who took my order was from a country that speaks Arabic and French. I didn't feel up to offering an Arabic and English Book of Mormon. But I did feel comfortable offering some French issues of the Liahona magazine. I subscribed to the French Liahona for a few years, but I haven't given many out, so they've been accumulating.

I assumed her family was Muslim, so I made sure she knew it was Christian religious material, and she didn't have a problem with that, and was still willing to receive the material. So while I waited on my order, I went out to the car and brought back in a couple French Liahona magazines. She was very polite and grateful in accepting them.

The food was very good, so I left a good tip; and I plan on going back.

Take out the trash = Book of Mormon placement. Sat, May 16, 2009.

05/16/2009. 1144. When it rains, it pours. I was already blown away today. I already had three encounters, giving out material to 5 people in 5 languages. But the day wasn't over. Late in the evening, I took some trash out to the dumpster. And there was a taxi waiting in the driveway of the apartment complex. There's only one taxi company in town that has almost entirely caucasian-American drivers. But this taxi wasn't that company. All the other companies employ or contract mainly African immigrant drivers. So chances were that the driver was from Africa.

I saw the taxi on the way to the dumpster, and at first I was going to blow the opportunity off, thinking it's late (almost 11:00pm), his fare will be here too quick. But on the way back to my apartment, I got that antsy feeling that this would indeed be a missed opportunity. I could feel myself struggling against the Spirit. So I decided to back up and go for it.

I turned around, and walked back to the driver's side of the taxi. He rolled down the window, and I asked where he was originally from. Guinea. 2nd guy from Guinea today. So I asked if he spoke Fulani. Bingo! And French too. So I offered him material from church, and made sure he knew it was Christian material, because he's Muslim. He agreed to receive it, so I hurried back home, retrieved a Fulani Gospel Fundamentals, Fulani JS Testimony pamphlet, French Book of Mormon, an English Book of Mormon, and a multi-lingual Together Forever DVD. I got there just as his fares were getting into his van. He accepted all but the JST pamphlet and the English Book of Mormon. And we finished our transaction just as the last passenger got in and closed the door. Perfect timing.

Maybe the fares got a spillover of the story from him. I'm not sure what all they heard. But I hope they asked him what I gave him, and he can say "a French Book of Mormon, and some book in my tribal language, Fulani."

I have to believe that the Lord set that one up, and His timing was perfect, down to the second.

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.

French, Hausa at laundromat. Sun, Oct 19, 2008.

10/19/2008. 1077. I was pulling a late-nighter at the all-night laundromat. A family, a mom and five children ranging from teenagers to a newborn, came in speaking a foreign language. I waited until they had put all their laundry in the washers and I had my laundry in the dryers, then I went over and spoke to the mom.

They were from Niger and spoke French and Hausa. I offered them a French Book of Mormon and a Hausa Sunday school manual. The mom accepted and agreed to receive them. So I went out to my car and retrieved them, plus the English copies.

When I presented them, they were definitely interested, and the mom asked where the church was. She started flipping through the material right there. After I went back and was folding my laundry, the mom was still reading the Gospel Fundamentals Sunday school manual.

Later on, I gave them a multi-lingual copy of "Together Forever" that has a French audio track.

French, Haitian Creole at church. Sun, Oct 5, 2008.

10/05/2008. 1072. I was sitting in the back row of the chapel waiting for general conference to start. A guy came in and sat next to me. I've seen him before at the chapel, but he goes to the other ward that shares the building. I'm not sure if he's a member or an investigator. He spoke to someone, and I could detect an accent, so I asked him where he's from. He said Haiti. I asked if he spoke and read Haitian Creole and he said yes.

I offered him a Haitian Creole Book of Mormon, and he agreed to receive one. I thought I had one in the car, but when I went out to get it, I couldn't find it. I did have some Haitian Creole copies of the Liahona, so I brought those in, and gave them to him. I said I'd get him the Haitian Creole Book of Mormon at the next conference session that day, or else I'd see him next week at church. He then said he could use a French Book of Mormon. I had forgotten that French was another common language of Haiti, along with Hatian Creole and Spanish.

I went back out to the car and retrieved a French Book of Mormon and a French Liahona magazine, came back, and presented those.

After that session of conference, I remembered I had a French New Testament in the car, so I gave him that one too, out in the parking lot.

I went home between sessions of conference, and put some Haitian Creole copies of the Book of Mormon in the car.

He was there for the second session, and I handed him the Haitian Creole Book of Mormon. He seemed happy, and when I glanced over a little later, he was still flipping through it.

French, Hausa at gas station. Fri, Sep 19, 2008.

09/19/2008. 1069. After leaving the grocery store, I felt inspired to stop at a gas station across the street. Cashier and another man were from a country in West Africa. They both spoke French, one spoke Hausa and one spoke Malinke. I offered the one a Hausa and English Gospel Fundamentals, and a Special Witnesses of Christ DVD that has a French audio track, and he gratefully accepted them. I offered the other man a French Book of Mormon, and a "Our Heavenly Father's Plan" DVD which also has a French audio track, and he gratefully accepted them. It was a very positive encounter. The latter man expresed interest in learning more about the church. I pointed out the nearest chapel on an info flyer in the book and DVD, and asked him to call the mission office number that was also on the flyer.

French at grocery store. Fri, Sep 19, 2008

09/19/2008. 1068. On way home late at night, after stopping at a gas station, also felt inspired to stop at a grocery store. An African man was leaving as I entered. He ended up accepting a Together Forever DVD (with French audio track) and French Book of Mormon.