The Gospel Restored to the Land of Jershon by Steve and Linda Sickles

Belize, Central America, is a small country measuring 168 miles north to south and 72 miles at its widest point across it's middle. It lies south of Yucatan, Mexico along the Caribbean Coast with Guatemala as its western and southern neighbor. It has a population of approximately 180,000 people who speak seven different languages including two Mayan dialects. Belize has a substantial population of illegal aliens, who have fled the tyrannies of Guatemala and El Salvador. Many of these aliens have lived by violence all their lives and hate all authority, which is in contrast to the generally peaceful and proud citizens of Belize.

Belize gained its independence from Great Britain in 1981 and was established as a parliamentary democracy. It has enjoyed a great degree of self-governing autonomy clear back to World War I and is a proud member of the British Common Wealth with English as its official language. Most Belizeans speak at least two of the seven languages.

My Belizean wife Linda and I met on the Island of Ambergris Key some 17 miles off the coast of Belize and married in November, 1983. We operated three successive small businesses there for five and one-half years, while the Lord reclaimed me after humbling me by allowing me to sink myself into the mire, but that is another lengthy testimony.

In December, 1988 we sold our last business and came to the States. After being here only 2 or 3 months the Lord revealed that it was his desire for us to return to Belize after a suitable time for Linda to become familiar with the Gospel, and for me to establish contacts with the Restoration Church and to be accepted once again as a priest in His church. I had been inactive for 20 some years.

Consequently in March, 1990 I drove back to Belize. Linda had already returned by air in December, 1989. Shortly after, Harold and Judith Hawley and Richard Hensley joined us for a while, Linda was baptized by Harold and her mother was baptized by myself on April 12. Our visitors left a few days later. Linda and I were staying in her mother's small house with Momma Gloria and a crippled, nearly blind brother, Guillermo, while we tried to find a place we could afford as we were living on our savings.

The work was going slowly. Only one family was responding to the gospel in cottage meetings held in their home. I was becoming somewhat discouraged when on Tuesday the Lord impressed upon me that I should go to the Brighamite services the following Sunday. The Brighamites are very active throughout Central America and they have a congregation of about 60 in Corozal Town where we were. Not wishing a confrontation I reluctantly went to their rented meeting hall and sat through two hours of Spanish services not understanding anything, as I don't speak Spanish, I wondered why I was there other than the Lord commanded it.

For the 3rd hour the women and children went off to their classes leaving the men, most of whom were in the Brighamite priesthood, for their class. One of the young American missionaries introduced a young man named Elder Arturo Gomez as the teacher of the hour.

Arturo no sooner began to speak than I saw in vision this young man whom I had never met, and myself out in the Mayan villages preaching the gospel and raising up the sick through the laying on of hands. Upon asking for confirmation I received that sweet spirit of assurance so that I didn't even wonder how this would come to pass because I knew it would.

After class Arturo introduced himself in broken English asking if I was a brother. I briefly explained that I was a Priest in another church which believed in the Book of Mormon. He didn't know there was another church which believed in the Book of Mormon and we parted.

That afternoon I was holding the regular cottage meeting at Collen Francis' home when Arturo unexpectedly showed up. Collen and his family were inactive Brighamites, he holding the office of Teacher. Arturo had just left the clinic two blocks away after paying for their 4th child, Delme. I was refuting the doctrines of celestial marriage and polygamy. Rose, Collen's wife, translated for Arturo. He became more excited as the class progressed and afterwards exuberantly expressed how he believed the Book of Mormon and had demanded to be baptized into the Brighamite church before he knew of the heretic doctrines. He became an Elder, but declares he never taught anything which wasn't clearly set forth in the Book of Mormon and the Bible. He wished a meeting at his house the following evening which we held in their little one room dwelling by kerosene lamp and flashlight. With my wife's limited Spanish and his limited English and an abundance of the Holy Spirit we were all blessed. We met almost daily during that week and the following week I flew back to Ray town to gather up our things and drive our old Suburban back to Belize.

Arturo left his family in Corozal Town and went to Belize City to try to find work. After fasting for three days and sleeping in the park (not a safe thing to do) as he had left what little he had with his family, he had a vision with a messenger. I don't remember all the details but in answer to his prayers he was told to forget about Belize City, to come out of the Mormon church and attach himself to me as his instructor and unite with our movement.

Harold Hawley and Richard Hensley caravaned back to Belize with me. We stopped on the way at the home of Patriarch/Evangelist Wayne Simmons in Joplin, Missouri, where, as I was leaving, he privately told me I had a call to the office of Elder.

My reunion with Arturo was a joyous one and he was shortly baptized. We were both called to the Eldership through Richard. By the time Richard and Harold left, Arturo's wife, Chuchi, had also joined us and we had several other interested parties meeting with us regularly.

This is how the work was restored in the Land of Jershon and the first part of my visions were fulfilled. The joyous work and blessings in the villages was to begin but I'll save those accounts for another time. Your loving brother and sister in Christ.