At that time the Church had just begun to be established in the Philippines. There was no meaningful Church presence in India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Mongolia, and Sri Lanka, In 1980 our family moved to Hong Kong, where we have made our home ever since. When we arrived in Hong Kong we were pleased to find one stake and one district, but we still had to return to the United States to be able to go to the temple.

The passing of time brings a wonderful perspective. The Lord’s work and his Church is truly beginning to ‘fill the whole earth’, as it has been prophesied to do so. We have seen the membership of the Church grow to exceed 12 million. The number of temples has grown to over 120, with most of them having been built in the last 10 years. Not only can I no longer identify all of the temples by their pictures; there are now temples in cities that I have never even heard of before. Closer to home, we have been able to attend temple dedications in Taipei, Taiwan and in Hong Kong.

We have seen the Church in Taiwan grow to nine stakes and two districts with a total of 92 wards and branches with three missions. We have seen several beautiful new stake centers dedicated in the last year. We have seen the Church in Hong Kong grow to five stakes and one district with a prominent new Church administration and multi-unit facility also dedicated in the last year. The work is moving forward successfully in the ten years that missionaries have been in Cambodia and Mongolia, where the majority of the missionary force in each country is already composed of local missionaries.

The Church is continuing to grow in Japan, Korea, (both of which have their own temples), India, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The Philippines, in addition to having a beautiful temple in Manila, has close to a half million members. Earlier this year the country of Laos, where we have one branch, was dedicated by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland and the government authorities in Vietnam have recently permitted baptisms in that country. As an Area Presidency we have just had the opportunity to meet with all of the Stake and District presidencies in our area, and are so impressed with the maturity and righteous desires of these leaders who have been called to lead the local units of the Church. They are yet another indication of the growing strength of the Church in this area.

There can be no doubt that the Church will continue to expand until it does truly fill the world. The more important question for each of us to ponder is whether we are individually experiencing the spiritual growth that we personally need. Are we growing in the same way that the Church is growing? The Lord will manage the growth of the Church, but we must each individually manage our own growth. He will not and can not force us. He has said that it is his “work and glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39), but it is our ‘work to keep the commandments with all of our might, mind and strength.” (DC 11:20). He can not do his work if we do not do ours.

Sometimes I meet members of the Church who have a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel, but do not seem to understand the importance of that which they say they believe. They have a testimony but then do not exhibit the faith that is required to do the things that bring personal spiritual growth and they are not valiant. I find great joy in associating with those members who quietly are always “at the right place at the right time”. They are often in the temple. You never wonder whether they will be at a meeting or an activity. They quietly look for ways to help others. They don’t seek after position, but are happy to do whatever they are called to do. They don’t gossip, but are found saying kind things about others. They find joy in the gospel and are full of the good cheer that the Lord has promised those who are his true disciples. They find knowledge in the scriptures and peace and inspiration through prayer. They are the examples that I would like to follow.