4 of 10: Church in Sydney

My husband wanted to attend church on Sunday when we were in Sydney. If I'm completely honest, I was NOT thrilled. I figured if I only had 72 hours in Australia, I didn't want to "waste" precious sightseeing time in church.

But when we discovered the temple was closed (will describe in a future post), I had a change of heart. 

Sunday morning, we woke up early and walked a few city blocks from our hotel. The air was brisk and lovely - the closest weather to a Virginia October I've felt in 2 years! At 185 Liverpool St., across from a beautiful park, we found the inconspicuous sign in the glass window. We took the elevator to the 2nd floor and attended Sacrament meeting.

The chapel was filled with missionaries. I counted 20! A couple missionary later confirmed that there were 10 missionary companionships in the ward. Apart from the missionaries, a very multicultural congregation surrounded us - mostly Asians.

We sang "Come Unto Jesus" as the opening hymn. I could barely sing the last verse because my heart was overflowing with gratitude as I realized I was witnessing the fulfillment of this hymn:

Come unto Jesus from ev’ry nation,
From ev’ry land and isle of the sea.
Unto the high and lowly in station,
Ever he calls, “Come to me.”

After the meeting, a sister turned around and introduced herself. She was from Fiji. When she heard we lived in Jakarta, she quickly located a newly baptized member of their ward. Albert, from Indonesia.

"Salamut Pagi" we said (good morning). He greeted us with a huge smile. As we conversed, I had the most unexpected feeling. Here I was in Australia - an English speaking, first-world country. And I felt most at home speaking to this Indonesian brother.

The couple missionary took us to the roof of the building to show us the view of Sydney. You can see the Sydney Opera House over my shoulder. Sailboats dotted the harbor. The water glistened like thousands of diamonds. Deciduous trees blazed with autumn colors. And my heart overflowed with gratitude for so many things.

Clean air.

Church in Sydney, Australia.

Indonesia.

Albert.

Hymn #117

And of course, my good husband with whom I get to experience all these incredible things.