Tonga!

Thursday, August 15th

I heard a wonderful missionary experience today. Elder Makasini, an American Tongan who lived in California, told of this experience. He was preparing to go on his mission to Tonga when he met a Tongan missionary who was serving in California. His name was Elder Hamala. They became friends and when Elder Makasini was ready to leave for Tonga, Elder Hamala asked a favor of him. He told him where his mother lived in Tonga and explained that she was a widow and not a member of the church. His greatest desire was that one day she would be touched by the Spirit and join the church. He asked Elder Makasini to promise him that if he was ever serving where Sister Hamala lived, that he would look her up and bear his testimony to her. The promise was made and the two friends parted.

Elder Makasini didn’t serve anywhere near where Sister Hamala lived for the first year of his mission. He forgot all about the promise he had made to Elder Hamala. Then one day he was on splits with another missionary that took him to the far side of the island from where he lived. They ended up in the humble home of a widow. During the course of the conversation they discovered that she had a son serving a mission in California. Elder Makasini asked her what her son’s name was and the memory of the promise came back to him as he learned that this was Elder Hamala’s mother.
Elder Makasini told this sweet woman about his friendship with her son and then shared with her the message that her son was taking to the people of California and he was taking to the people of Tonga. He bore his testimony to her, the Spirit was strong and then they left. Elder Makasini didn't see her again.

One day, late in his mission, Elder Makasini was walking down the sidewalk across the street from the Tongan Temple. He heard someone call his name and look up to see Elder Hamala running to meet him. After a sweet reunion Elder Makasini said that he had kept his promise and then asked about Elder Hamala’s mother. With tears in his eyes, Elder Hamala told of his mother’s conversion to the church and pointing to the temple he explained that she was in the temple at that very moment doing baptisims for the dead. They were anxiously awaiting the day that she could go through the temple and receive her own endowments. He expressed his gratitude for a good friend that kept his promise and bore his testimony to his mother, starting her on the path to full membership in the church.

                                                      LOVE THAT STORY!!