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When Latter-day Saints leave church on Sundays, they likely don’t expect it to be the last time they will be allowed in a church building for the next 18 months.
A video released Jan. 6 shares the stories of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ghana during a freeze on church meetings. On June 14, 1989, government officials ordered that all meetinghouses be locked. Nine thousand members had to find their own ways to worship.
“The freeze was very hard for me personally and for my family, especially my dad,” Flint Mensah said in the video. “Church was our everything, and all of the sudden it was just all gone.”
During the freeze, LDS Church leaders gave members permission to partake of the sacrament in their homes. This became a special experience for them as their homes became sanctuaries.
The video also highlights the importance of home teaching during the freeze and how members used home and visiting teaching to ensure the well-being of their members.
To read the full article on Deseret News, click here.
Michael RichFebruary 6, 2016
What an amazing story of faith and perseverance. I personally thank the Lord for each day given me to serve and to influence the lives of those around me. I'm sure that there is a close linkage with the ban that existed and the subsequent growth of the Church in Ghana...now complete with their own Temple. May each of us be capable of demonstrating the strength that was present by the Ghana Saints during this difficult time..