The measurement of time in a missionary’s life begins and end with each “transfer.” Or in French language countries: “mutation,” which means change. So every six weeks, a missionary can expect or hope for change. It could happen, or it may not. A wise young lady (our daughter Chloe) gave us her ultimate tip for the mission: allow yourself one cry a transfer– “you can do just about anything for six weeks.” As mission leaders, we hold the answers to the most important questions in each missionary’s life: Where will I live, whom will I live with, and for how long? Our mission has 77 secteurs. Each secteur is generally attached to a paroisse or congregation. A young missionary may stay in one locale for six weeks or six months depending on the needs of the mission, as determined by the president. So during any given mutation on the calendar, our “family” changes. We say goodbye to missionaries who are finished with their 18-month or 2-year mission. We welcome brand new “deer-in-the-headlights” missionaries, and we comfort, boost, and train them. We study and counsel with them in councils. We hold zone conferences to accommodate all 154 elders and sisters over three to five days. The conferences are a combination of setting goals and expectations, teaching the doctrine of Christ, presenting practical lessons on thriving in the mission, role playing and expressing love. The most important thing that we teach is repentance, which for all intents and purposes is a mutation. It is the humble offering of our own will, and with that, Christ prunes each of us, if we allow him. We’re not going to lie, we’ve experienced this pruning and it is painful. It hurts. Honestly, you want Him to stop it sometimes; probably most times. But you can always trust that Christ will never break His promises with you. (Judges 2:1) This means we will all be better, as the promised new creature we are becoming emerges.

President Litchfield interviews each and every missionary at least once during the mutation. Each missionary writes to the mission president on Mondays, their preparation day and President Litchfield has responded to each missionary. 160 letters a week X 36 weeks so far = 5,760 letters already read and answered!… only 19,200 more to go!) These letters are foundational to his relationship with them. To see the growth and change (mutation) over time is sublime. The struggles the young missionaries suffer with are not small. The Africans have incredibly hard problems: poverty, poor healthcare, dental care, and sometimes lack of someone to care for them period. Some have been homeless or passed around to families or friends for most of their lives. Some don’t have access to clean water, good jobs, or even adequate education. Some have dealt with rejection by their family because of their decision to serve a full-time mission. Many of our missionaries, both from this side of the pond and the other side, have bouts of doubting themselves, their language skills, and their own courage. They worry about those back at home, and many have dealt with the tragic, unexpected death of family members. Yet they dedicate themselves to Jesus Christ so they may shine His light and invite others to come unto Him. When we think of the individual and collective sacrifices they have made, it melts our hearts. Like Apostle Elder David A. Bednar says in his talk “Bear Up Their Burdens With Ease,” it is the load that makes the beautiful change in us. As we yoke ourselves to Jesus Christ, we know we can put forth our very best effort and He will do the rest of the heavy lifting. We can see this firsthand in the devoted disciples surrounding us. These “pieces of clay” are becoming surprisingly capable, absolutely motivated, and actually spiritual giants. They are open to the idea of stretching , of changing, and of experimentation. A mission is the perfect laboratory for change (mutation): with open minds and hearts providing the perfect formula. These elders and the sisters loved us the minute we arrived in Abidjan, and we did absolutely nothing to deserve it. Their love has and continues to change us.

Welcome to our blog about our assignment in Côte d’Ivoire. It’s been over seven months since we landed in Abidjan. Our minds are blown, our eyes are peeled and our hearts are full. A photo dump seems the best way to catch everyone up to the speed on this lovely and hard experience we are having. Since July, we have welcomed and said good-bye to so many missionaries. We have learned names we once thought impossible to pronounce, but have now mastered, like Elder Akagburuonye and Sœur Niyomwungere. Wade’s French is off and running while London’s comes and goes in fits and starts. The incredible African voices we hear each Sunday and at meetings in our bureau absolutely lift us and are the sweetest sounds on this continent. We have been to villages where there are mere branches of the church like Tiassale, Dabou and Grand Lahou, where faithful members are learning discipleship. We have been to the other countries in our mission on several occasions: Senegal to visit five branch congregations and fourteen missionaries, not to mention the gorgeous coastline, and The Gambia to install the first two missionaries to ever walk the streets of Banjul. We anxiously watch the construction of the Abidjan temple from the upstairs window of our apartment, and rejoice when pieces of scaffolding come down or new palm trees are installed. We have decided foutou and sauce d’arachide are our favorite Ivoirian dishes. By the way, Ivoirians are the best. They are so loving and anxious to help you and be your instant friend. As mission leaders there is yet so much to learn. We are not sure we will ever learn it all, but we are changing. Repenting. Praying. Striving. Growing. Progressing. Time passes like the speed of lightening and drags on simultaneously, it seems. Finally we are coming to the surface for gulps of air, and feeling like we have arrived at a place we now call home.