An Impulsive Meal

Last week my cell phone rang. It was a boy named Kemsey. He sounded as if he was about 13. He told me that I owed him and his brother a lunch. I had no idea of what he was talking about or who he was. Such is the busy, hectic life of a mission president.

Today I treated Jesse (16) and his brother Kemsie (13) to lunch at Famous Dave's, a great barbecue joint.

The Rest of the Story:

A few months ago I happened to meet two boys who had just gotten baptized. I was impressed with their energy and enthusiasm. At the same time I was worried about their ability and desire to come to church on a regular basis. It's one thing to get baptized but it seems to be a completely other thing to stick with it after baptism.

And why do what we do if those who get baptized don't stick with it?

So I impulsively challenged these two brothers to come to church every Sunday. And, apparently (because there were witnesses) I said something like, "If you come for 10 Sundays in a row, I'll take you out to lunch!" I have no recall of this, but Kemsey, Jesse and a couple missionaries heard it and recorded it in their minds.

We had a great lunch. Both boys love football. They were born in Haiti. They hope to go to BYU and serve missions at the appropriate age. And they have big appetites!