...reported President Christensen, President of District A of the MTC-Provo. Formerly a mission president in Ukraine, he promised the Russian and Ukraine missionaries of Branch 10 that they are the "salvation of their countries, both temporally and spiritually!" Each week Elder Cook and myself visit this Branch to partake of the sacrament of the Lord and Savior and to partake in the sweet spirit that abides in this missionary branch of elders and sisters.

Powerfully committed to study and to learn Preach My Gospel techniques summarizes the four week program of our recently arrived Russians and Armenian missionaries. This program, initiated two years ago under the tutelage of Elder Uchtdorf, now Second Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has at its foundation the sole purpose of giving them a sound spiritual foundation of the gospel in a somewhat "crash course" at the MTC. This course includes intensive study classes 7 days a week, missionaries receiving their personal endowments the first week, subsequent temple visits the next three weeks, individual patriarchal blessings given, a Sunday visit to a traditional ward to view first-hand a well-established ward, weekly attendance at Sunday Firesides and Tuesday night devotionals instructed by General Authorities and members of the General Auxiliary Boards, and of course, introduction to American foods such as BYU ice cream, hamburgers and French fries, pizza and lettuce wraps, to name a few.

Additionally, during their four week stay, our Russians and Armenians take a 1/2 day trip and tour of Temple Square hosted by the MTC and Brother Cook and myself serving as the tour guide. This guided tour includes visiting the Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg., the Beehive House, Temple Square including the South and North Visitors Center and Conference Center, the Church History Museum and finally a short walk to the Church Administration Bldg where we conclude riding the elevator to the 27th floor to view SLC. Finally, we snap photos of the group in front of the large mural of "Christ on the Road to Emaeus" (see above).

What a thrill to be a part of these young people's lives and to feel their dedication to righteousness, their hopes and dreams and sometimes their fears and self-doubt. Truly, he MTC is a 'little bit of heaven,' especially felt as we drive away from its campus and observe "the world."