At the end of September we were told as a branch that Elder Jeffery R. Holland was coming to Cairo to speak just to our branch in the next two weeks.
Josh and I were very excited for we both have had times where we were in the same building/room with a General Authority but we have never been in a situation where it was so personal. This time we didn’t have to fight and struggle to get a close shot of him. We knew he was going to stay awhile afterwards to speak to all the members since there were about 70 members in the branch. And we were right.
Even though our chapel room is small and no matter where you sit, you will have a good view, we wanted the best of the best seats…well besides sitting right next to him. The fireside started at 7. We got there at 5:30. We were the first ones there besides the Branch President. Because of our eagerness, we sat 4 feet away from the podium. We were also able to help our Branch President get everything ready for the wonderful night that lay ahead of us.
To prepare us for the day, we fasted all day and started the day with a wonderful prayer before we both studied the scriptures at 6 a.m. We were able to feel the spirit so much because of our preparation. You could tell Elder Holland was in the building before we saw him because of the feeling you felt.
Elder Steven E. Snow and his wife came with Elder and Sister Holland. All 4 of them spoke for an hour and a half. Mine and Josh’s notes follow:
Sister Snow:
-gospel of happiness
-the church will be recognized here in Egypt
Elder Snow:
-reach out to help others even if they have lost their way
-look for those opportunities
-take care of each other. We are all family here.
Sister Holland:
-We are with the certainy of God.
-we are fulfilling the assignment from God by being here
-accept that we will have disappointment, discouragement, and despair (the 3 D’s) on our journey/path
-we will feel the Love of Christ to know that we are on the right path
-“You can be my sister”-love each other unconditionally; the love of God
-read the scriptures many times a day
-allow ourselves to grow; to blossom like a rose; bring the best of us out
-God’s love is more powerful than the 3 D’s
-keep praying for the light of Christ and His love
Elder Holland:
-within the last 60 days, the church has created a North African Middle East Region with Elders Holland and Snow in charge of it
-we WILL go to EVERY nation
-pray for the openings of nations
-more members outside the U.S. than in and more Spanish and Portuguese members than English
-we are all members of the Body of Christ
-each do our role and part in the Body of Christ
-the 3 D’s will not end this dispensation. This dispensation will NOT end
-if we grasp the priesthood, we can change the world
-Mormon men are strong but the Mormon women are incredible
At the end of Elder Holland’s talk, he turned into a District Conference and opened the floor up for questions. Any of us could ask a question to him or any of the other 3 members there. If I knew that he was going to do that ahead of time, I would have come up with a question to ask but since it was such short notice, I didn’t ask him anything. Only 2 or 3 members asked a question but I don’t remember what they were.
After the whole program was over, we all got in line to meet all 4 of them. He was excited for Josh to be here going to school. He put his hand on Josh’s back and he also rubbed the back of his head. The first thing he told me was he loved my curly hair and he rubbed his hand all over my head and ran his fingers through my hair. He is a very loving person and easily approachable guy. His wife is very pretty. They both made quite a few jokes in their talks.
It was a wonderful experience having Elder Holland speaking to our branch. I can testify that he and Elder Snow are men of God.
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