After nine years of planning and taking several temple preparation classes, the Jadwong family from Tororo, Uganda was recently sealed in the Johannesburg Temple. Brother John Jadwong feels that their patience was significantly tested during the years of waiting, and he often worried that something would happen to one of their children before he was able to get his family to the temple.
As they approached the time to leave, he thought of postponing the trip yet again, since it was a crucial time for his school-aged children to be at school. However, when he compared his circumstances to those of Abraham, who was asked to sacrifice the son he had so patiently waited for, Brother Jadwong asked himself, “Who was I to resist the Lord’s time? I knew by (the) Spirit that these were the Lord’s children, and I was only their caretaker.”
Looking back, he realized that “the Lord had actually prepared a time for my family to be sealed that was unknown to me. It was when our last born was able to travel with us.” However, there were still hurdles to be crossed as they applied for their temple recommends.
As Uganda Kampala Mission President Robert Chatfield reviewed the recommends for the family of eight waiting outside his office and scheduled to depart in just a few hours for Johannesburg, South Africa, he realized he did not have the membership numbers for the three youngest children. They had traveled a great distance to obtain his signature, and he was afraid he was going to disappoint them. After struggling with this dilemma, he dropped to his knees and asked the Lord for His help. He arose and stepped out to the family and asked to see all of their papers. There, stuck between several other records, was a year-end Donation Summary listing all the family members’ names and membership numbers. It was a miracle! The way was opened, and the family proceeded with the interview. President Chatfield marveled, asking, “How often do you carry a copy of your Donation Summary with you?”
The moment the Jadwong family began their actual travel to the temple, everything started to proceed more smoothly. Brother Jadwong finally began to relax. His family was given priority at Uganda Immigration, then again upon boarding their flight, and finally at customs in South Africa. Fellow travelers were kind and everyone allowed the family priority.
At the temple, the Jadwongs experienced a second miracle. They were able to be sealed to their son, Bernard Okotel, who was born in 1987 and passed away in 1990, before the family had joined the Church.
Later, at the Church History Center, they learned of more ancestors whose names were available at the temple, some of them family members they had never known before. The time was ripe for them to receive their blessings as well.
When the Jadwongs returned home to Uganda, the family held a testimony meeting with their small in-home group of members, sharing the joy of their trip to the temple. In the words of those who attended the meeting, “We were treated to a family that was full of the Spirit!”
Excerpted by Marnae Wilson