The coordinators and sisters missionaries share spiritual experiences testifying of God's love for all with guests at the Laie Hawaii Temple Visitors' center
Serving in a place of peace, the Laie Hawaii Temple Visitors’ Center coordinators and missionaries said their interactions with guests, although brief, serve as a reminder of the continuous fulfillment of the gathering of Israel and the joy of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Elder Dennis Singleton and Sister Kim Singleton, the Laie Hawaii Temple Visitors’ Center coordinators from Alabama, said every interaction with guests is a special moment to bear witness of God’s love for His children.
“All the little moments [at the Laie Hawaii Temple Visitors’ Center ] would feel like coincidences, but [they] are not. It is the Lord’s hands,” said Dennis Singleton. “It is important to look for those moments. Sometimes, we fail to recognize that it is in everything we do,” he said.
Right here, right now
Dennis Singleton shared an experience when a Chinese couple came in, but no one was available who could speak their language then. He said he sent a message to the Chinese-speaking sisters to come, but he didn’t hear anything back.
He then shared a family who had been taking pictures outside, came into the Visitors' Center. The wife asked one of the missionaries if they needed someone to speak to the Chinese couple, said Dennis Singleton. It turned out, he said, her husband served a mission in China and was able to share a message with them from the Book of Mormon.
“He was a missionary all over again. To me, that is the gathering of Israel,” said Dennis Singleton. “They were here at the right moment, at the perfect time to do what the Lord would want them to do,” he said.
Sister Streadback, a missionary at the Laie Hawaii Visitors’ Center Mission from Texas, said it is incredible to see the gathering of Israel whenever they hand out copies of the Book of Mormon in different languages. “I had the opportunity to hand out copies of the Book of Mormon in languages that I didn’t even know existed before [such as Twi, Igbo, and Amharic],” she said.
“As Visitors’ Center sisters, we are in fact emissaries of the Church because we interact with people from every continent every day,” said Sister Streadback.
“Some days there would be a family of 10 from Utah, and then there’s a sweet couple from Kenya, a family from Bermuda, and then a sweet lady from China,” she said.
“It is incredible to just meet so many people and know God organized the details so you would meet them right there, right now,” she said. She said she feels so honored she can be the reason why guests know the Savior loves them.
A unique mission
The Laie Hawaii Temple Visitors’ Center is a place where people can feel the spirit, said Sister Kim Singleton. “Prophets have blessed the entire temple ground,” she said, “and it is part of that ground.”
She said guests from different nationalities will always be pointed to the statue of Christ during their tours. “The sister missionaries make sure guests understand everything in the gospel of Jesus Christ is centered around the Savior,” said Kim Singleton.
She said guests don’t stay for a long time. When guests walk through the doors, the sister missionaries immediately greet them with warm smiles. She said they show the guests the Hawaiian translation of the Book of Mormon, the Laie Hawaii Temple model, and if time permits, play the 90-second Christus narration. Guests can also take self-guide themselves around the Visitor’s Center, she added.
“It depends on how they feel the person relates. They try to use inspiration and know what the guests might want,” she said. “We have people come in, and the only reason they do is because they see the temple,” said Kim Singleton. Seeing the big building and how pretty it is from afar, she said, is one thing that helps attract the guests to come.
“People [are] interested in what the Laie Hawaii Temple looks like on the inside,” said Sister Son, a Visitors’ Center missionary from Australia. She said showing the temple model as a part of the tour takes down the barrier of people thinking it’s a secret or must never be talked about.
“It shows people we are open to share why we love the temple so much, and what we can learn from the temple,” she said. Through it, she said the share that Church members love Jesus Christ and show it by worshiping in the temple.
Dennis Singleton said serving in the Visitors’ Center is unique due to some instructions. He said when they talk to the guests about the temple, they make minor changes to some of the Church terms to help guests understand clearly.
For example, he said they call the endowment room as “the instruction room” to help guests understand it is where members of the Church are instructed about their relationship and covenants with Heavenly Father.
He added they also call the sealing room “the marriage room”. Elder Singleton explained they emphasize to guests the significance of a couple kneeling across the altar to make promises not only to each other but also more importantly, to God, which binds them for eternity.
Moments of tender mercies
Sister Kim Singleton said many spiritual experiences happen serving at the Visitors’ Center. One of her favorite memories, she said, is when little ones come and immediately run towards the Christus statue, saying “Jesus! Jesus!”
Elder Dennis Singleton also shared another experience when they had a young family come in. He said they were talking about the Christus statue when he asked the little girl the reason for having the Savior’s arms and hands stretched out. He said the little girl paused to think about the question, looked at the Christus, and then looked at her dad. Her answer was when her dad comes home from work, Elder Singleton said, he always stands like that and she runs and jumps in his arms.
Her dad then told her that is what the Savior wants her to do—to jump in His arms, Elder Singleton said. It is a special moment with her dad the child will remember, he added.
“Those moments of tender mercies to me are so important because that brings families together,” said Dennis Singleton.
When guests walk through the door, Elder Singleton said he sees “a visible expression in them.” “They feel something. Sometimes they just don’t know what that is,” he said.
Miracles happen at the Visitors' Center every day, said Dennis Singleton. He said they have guests come in wanting to learn more about the Savior. He also said missionaries were able to get their contact information and were able to talk to them later too. He said there had also been baptisms from those interactions. “I feel joy when we help the guests feel the Spirit and let them know God loves them and is there for them,” he said. •