In January, 705 volunteers gathered at the Sacred Ground of Soil in Angola, driven by a deep desire to serve Masaaki-sama. They cultivated 300 square meters of land, planting 2,350 corn seeds in 572 holes, and also prepared 420 square meters of land for the next planting of okra, cassava, watermelon, papaya, and corn. To build a reservoir capable of storing over 120 metric tons of rainwater, members are excavating a 7 m × 7 m × 2.5 m pit entirely by hand. The harvest yielded 43 kg of onions, 4 kg of jindungo (a type of red chili pepper), 16 kg of papaya, 12 kg of chili peppers, and 11 kg of bananas. *** Once again, we have received an extraordinary testimony of gratitude. In the northern Luanda district of Angola, Mateus Tomasassa (a non-member), who attends the Mulevo 3 Church, suffered a workplace accident while working as a metalworker when a piece of metal entered one of his eyes. His supervisor arranged for him to receive treatment at the country’s largest ophthalmology center, located in another province. However, as he was scheduled to do dedicatory work at the Sacred Ground of Soil the following day, Mateus immediately called the lead minister of his church and explained the circumstances of the accident and the treatment his company had arranged. Although a non-member, Mateus had been attending church faithfully, studying Masaaki-sama’s Sacred Word, and had developed a strong relationship of trust with the lead minister. When Mateus decided to take part in the next day’s dedicatory work, the lead minister visited him. Together they prayed, entrusting the situation to God’s hands in the name of Masaaki-sama. The intense pain continued the next day, but Mateus stood by his decision and took part in the dedicatory work at the Sacred Ground of Soil. As he became immersed in the dedicatory work, he even forgot he was in pain—and to his astonishment, the foreign object in his eye had disappeared at some point, and the pain had completely vanished. Mateus was deeply moved by the holiness of the sacred ground, and became firmly convinced of what he had learned from the lead minister of his church: that God lives within him, and that the sacred ground is the dwelling place of Kyoshu-sama and Masaaki-sama. With a deepening desire to seek Masaaki-sama’s Sacred Word, Mateus has decided to become a member at the next Profession Ceremony. *PhotosPhotos 1–3: Members digging the reservoir.