“I think the Spirit of the Lord is brooding over Africa,” says Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve in this first of two videos about the growth of the Church in Africa after years of political strife. “His hand is on the work. His Spirit is stirring the people,” he says.
After more than a decade of war, conflict, and violence, a mission and a stake have emerged in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in what Elder Holland calls “a modern miracle.”
The mission now averages 200 baptisms per month as people continue to embrace the gospel. “We have been waiting for this for years,” reports Abibu Charles, first counselor in the stake presidency of the stake that Elder Holland organized in December 2012. “The Church is growing rapidly,” he says.
Long-term members of the Church endured their country’s difficult years by anchoring themselves to their faith. They now serve as leaders of a new generation of spiritual, happy, and faithful members.
“The image that I carry home is always their faces,” says Elder Holland. “They just look like the beautiful people of God that they are.”
Watch the other video in this series:
Part 2: Finding Peace through the Gospel in Sierra Leone
Learn how people's faith, spirituality, and happiness are spurring a momentum of growth.
