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.

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, 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.

Various. Road Trip Day 1. Mon, Jan 14, 2008.

01/14/2008. Hopefully, I'll get around to fleshing this out when I get more time.

Since I flew down, and drove back, I could only take so many books in my checked baggage, and I didn't have the normal complement of inventory in my car.

941. Spanish. "Together Forever" DVD to fellow diner at a Chinese restaurant. He was from Guatemala.

942. Simplified Chinese and English Book of Mormon to cook at Chinese restaurant. Cashier/waitress declined, but cook later asked to see.

943. Vietnamese declined. Cold call at Vietnamese-owned nail salon.

944. Vietnamese declined. Cold call at Vietnamese-owned nail salon.

945. Korean. "Our Heavenly Father's Plan" DVD, at service place along turnpike. Two Korean ladies parked right next to me as I was getting out of my car.

946. Turkish/English copies of Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlet, and English Book of Mormon, at a mom-and-pop restaurant. 1 Nephi 4:6

947. French/Haitian Creole/English copies of Book of Mormon at an international grocery store.

948. Twi and English copies of Book of Mormon at gas station.

949. One Traditional script Chinese, one Simplified script Chinese, and two English copies of the Book of Mormon at a Chinese restaurant. Cashier's sister is a member of the church.

950. At a gas station. Hindi/English copies of the Book of Mormon. Hindi Liahona. Punjabi Gospel Fundamentals. Punjabi/English Joseph Smith Testimony pamphlets. Punjabi man knows someone in Indianapolis.

Journal Entry. Missed opportunity with a Spanish-speaking couple at a McDonalds.

951. Bengali Book of Mormon (no english) at gas station at exit where I stayed the night.

Moment #681. French, Haitian Creole at store. Thu, Aug 3, 2006.

08/03/2006. After leaving a meeting a church, I picked up a package at a friend's house. On the way home from his house, I felt an obvious impression to turn left at the light towards a commercial area instead of continuing ahead to go home. The first thing that popped into my mind was to eat supper at a particular restaurant. That was a less clear impression, but it felt right. I ate there, but didn't see any obvious opportunities for book placements.

Leaving the restaurant parking lot, I felt a clear impression, or "tug" to go to the Meijer store. This probably meant that going to the restaurant was a "timing factor," and that my contact would be a fellow customer. I needed some groceries anyway, so it worked out.

I saw a family in the produce section, one of whom was talking on her cell phone. I wasn't close enough to hear if she was speaking a foreign language, but the kids were speaking English without foreign accents. So I figured they were not my contacts.

I passed through the frozen food section, and was about to head for the checkout when, just by chance, I walked directly past them going in the opposite diretion. Then it was clear that she was speaking a foreign language on her phone.

I started a conversation by asking if she spoke French, and she said yes. She was from Haiti, and spoke French, Haitian Creole, and English. In French, I offered her "books from my church" in French and Haitian, and she agreed. Switching to English, I said I'd bring them in from my car, and find her again.

I left my cart, and went out to the car and brought back in French, Haitian, and English copies of the Book of Mormon, and a French Liahona magazine. I found the family again, and presented the books and magazine to her. She was eager and happy to receive them. We chatted a bit more. She had married a man from the US and their children were raised in the US, so that was why they didn't have an accent.