Learning about Georgia

February 2, 2019

Learning About Georgia

For the next several days, Jacob along with family members began researching and learning about this tiny country of Georgia that we knew very little about.

• Georgia considers itself to be in Eastern Europe.
• The winters are not as cold as in Armenia.  The Caucasus mountains block the cold air from Russia.
• Georgia has an strong ancient tradition of orthodox Christianity.
• One of the earliest translations of the Bible is in the Georgian language.
• Georgia has survived many attacks from other countries through its long history.
• There are four spoken languages in Georgia but only one is written.
• The Georgian language is spoken only in Georgia and is not related to any other language.
• The beautiful Georgian alphabet is unique to Georgia.
• The Georgian language is among the hardest languages to learn.
• People eat lots of meat, bread, cheese, eggs.  They grow delicious berries, grapes, and apricots.
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is fairly young in Georgia.  
• The Book of Mormon was translated into Georgian in 2018 but only in digital form.  There are no books in print yet.
• There are two branches of the Church - both in Tbilisi.  There is also a small group outside of Tbilisi in Rustavi.
• There are 16 full-time missionaries -- 10 elders and 6 sisters.
• The Georgian part of the mission opened in 1999.
• Georgians call their country Sakartvelo - not Georgia.
• Georgians are peaceful, friendly people and their country is quite safe.
• Missionaries are free to openly proselyte in Georgia but not in Armenia, which is the other country in the mission.

Elder Fisher is sure to have wonderful experiences in the country of Georgia.

Mission Call

January 29, 2019
Mission Call

On January 29, 2019, Jacob received his mission call in an email from Church headquarters.  He was going to school at BYU in Provo and planned to open it that evening.  He invited roommates, ward members, and friends to join him.  His parents, sisters, and friends joined on FaceBook live and Instagram.

He opened the email and began reading:  "Dear Elder Fisher, You are hereby called to serve as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  You are assigned to labor in the Armenia/Georgia Mission."

At that point, there was an audible gasp in the room, then everyone broke out in cheers.

Jacob continued, "You should report to the Provo Missionary Training Center..." -- Jacob paused and pointed out his window and said, "That's right over there". (He had a view of the MTC from his window.)   He continued reading, "on Wednesday, June 12, 2019.  You will prepare to preach the gospel in the Georgian language."

At that point jokes were made that the Georgian language was like southern but without the drawl.

Everyone, including Jacob, seemed to be in shock.  Georgia.  Wow.  That's not in the United States.  That wasn't a guess anyone made.  That wasn't even on the radar as a possibility.

Jacob will be a fabulous missionary.  The Lord has called him to the country of Georgia for a purpose and it will be exciting how that all plays out.

Congratulations Elder Fisher.