The Restoration Is for All

Josey was filled with the spirit of missionary work after her baptism in April of 2023. She wanted to share the joy and happiness that she felt with others, and that meant just about everybody she encountered. She shared her testimony with friends, relatives, and even uber drivers. Little did she know that her testimony, and her desire to share it, would provide a way to rescue her from a very difficult situation at the border between Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana.

Her path to baptism was not easy. Born in Togo, she first encountered the Church as a young girl but was prevented from being baptized by family members. As she got older, she moved to Accra Ghana, and with a friend decided that together they needed to find a church. “We decided to go to church because we really wanted to find God,” she said. “I began praying and would go into the bush and talk to the trees.”

One day, her friend came to her and said that he had found a church he wanted them to attend. Josey asked him which church it was and he said, “it’s the people who wear white and black.” She told him that she had been in that church before. “I know that it is a good church.”

Josey attended the church and felt as if she was where she should be. She began meeting with the missionaries and was soon baptized. “I found the Church again, and I am here. I have a family again, people that I love.” She is now a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and she wants everyone to know!

Her desire to share the gospel blessed her when faced with a challenge with custom officers at the border.

Josey’s father passed away while living in Cote d’Ivoire. Josey and her brother were tasked with bringing her father’s body back to Togo for burial. They spent all the money their family had gathered hiring an ambulance to drive the 14 hours from Cote d’Ivoire to Togo. She was able to share the gospel and her testimony with the ambulance driver and her brother as they drove both day and night over bumpy roads. She even spoke to her father about the gospel, feeling that his spirit would listen to her too.

When they reached the Ghanaian border, the customs officer would not let them pass. She pleaded with him to let them pass because they had already spent a lot of time on the road and the journey wasn’t easy. She was also concerned that the air conditioning in the ambulance was not strong enough to keep the body from deteriorating. But still, the officer would not let them pass.

Because she had no money, the officer finally said that they could go if she would give him one of her possessions. She took out a pamphlet that told the story of the Restoration of the gospel and wrote her name and phone number in it. “This is all I have, but it is worth more than money, so you can keep it,” she said. “If you want to know more about this you can call me later, or if all you want is money, call me and I will bring it to you later.” He took the pamphlet and let her pass.

She wasn’t sure if the officer ever read the pamphlet, but her faith influenced the ambulance driver. “I will visit your church,” he said. “I like your spirit and it kept me going all the way to Togo.”