Moment #71. Shona/Zulu. Oct 13, 2004.

10/13/2004. I was headed home from the chapel after Institute class at about 9:30pm. I could take either Michigan Street or 10th Street. I received a slight prompting, a hint, just a feeling, to take Michigan Street. I didn't know if it was my own feelings but I followed it. I had to make a dicey left turn into the liquor store's parking lot because a direct left onto Michigan is prohibited.

As I approached the Village Pantry at the corner of ____ I got a feeling to buy a newspaper.

Just a few feet before ____ the feeling turned into a strong prompting that crossed the line between doubt and near certainty; I had to go there. At the last possible moment I moved into the left turn lane, turned South onto ____, then into the VP parking lot.

As I got out of my car, a lady was leaving the store and I wondered if she was the one I was supposed to approach. I couldn't tell if she appeared more African than African-American. I remembered that oftentimes the Spirit gives us instructions that must be acted upon instantaneously or else the moment is lost, and I only had a couple seconds to rush over and say something. However, I did not get a sense of urgency about her, and during my indecision, fearing I'd appear threatening if I approached quickly, she entered her vehicle and drove off.

I went in the store and got a newspaper and a 2-liter of pop. The cashier spoke with a slight accent. I paid, and asked if he spoke any foreign languages. He said yes, Shona, from South Africa. Bingo! I smiled, got excited, and told him I had something in my car that I wanted to show him. He started to follow me to the door, but I said I'd bring it in. I retrieved a Shona and an English Book of Mormon from my trunk. I showed him the Shona and he started beaming and got excited too. He'd never seen a book in Shona since leaving South Africa. He was amazed. I showed him the English version too, and the info-flyer and my business card. I asked him to read and translate 1 Nephi 1:1, and he got it perfect. I invited him to church and he said he'd come Sunday.

We chit-chatted some more. I found out he's been here two years. He spoke English very well, so he won't need the combo for ESL learning, but he was going to have a fun time reading something in his native language. He said he almost graduated from college in South Africa, was just 2 credits shy, but had to leave because of turmoil.

I found out he also speaks Zulu, so I retrieved a Zulu edition from my car. We chit-chatted some more. In one of the books I marked Moroni 10:3-5, and then to read from 3 Nephi chapter 11 onward.

He started to ask questions about the church in Africa. I ended up giving him the phone numbers of our two sets of missionaries which he programmed into his cell phone right there.

I offered the other clerk an English Book of Mormon, but she declined. She said something about her church. I should have offered her an English Bible, but I didn't.

This was an extremely positive encounter. I left the V.P. on cloud nine. I don't know how this will turn out, but I stand all amazed.

Moment #2. Zulu at gas station. June 18, 2004.

06/18/2004. Yesterday, I separated out the African languages from my Book of Mormon collection thinking I might need them. Today, before I left the house, I had a strong feeling that I needed to put the African languages in the car, and I did so.

I ran some errands and decided to eat at a Chinese restaurant. On the way, I decided to stop at a Speedway Gas station to get some pop. One of the clerks was a black man with a foreign accent. I asked him where he was from. He said Pennsylvania and New York. "And before that?" I asked. He said Zimbabwe.

I asked him what African languages he spoke and he said some Tswana but mainly Zulu. I asked him, "If I gave you a book in Zulu, would you read it?" He said yes. I said "I'll be back."

I went back to the car and took the box of African language books into the gas station and gave him the one in Zulu and asked if he'd like the English version too. He seemed happy to receive them, and said that reading it would remind him of home. I left my business card with the books, asking him to let me know what he thought.