Sister Pearce in New Zealand: Life is Grand

I'm in New Zealand. I am in literally the most beautiful place on the planet.

This wasn't too much of an exciting week, but it was really good. I am continuing in the Book of Mormon! I am up to Alma 13 now, truckin' along with 6 pages a day. The revelation that I continue to receive amazes me. When people say that the Book of Mormon opens up the door to revelation, they are telling the truth. It is true. I know it is true. Everyday I read something that reminds me that we have a living prophet today, that the people in the Book of Mormon faced challenges and struggles just as we do, that the Book of Mormon truly is Another Testament of Jesus Christ, that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ make and keep covenants with their people, that missionary work is real and it is important, and that Joseph Smith was and is a Prophet of God and that he translated the Book of Mormon for our benefit and understanding. How grateful I am for Joseph Smith and for a loving Heavenly Father. The Gospel is True!! I know it is. (:

Sister Baird and I have been really trying to develop and use our talents these past couple of weeks. We felt like we were getting a bit too robotic in our missionary work, so we have started incorporating into our days the things that we like to do for other people and the things that bring us joy. So, we have started making cookies for people and we have started heart attacking people's doors. We do things that we love to do, and that show our love for other people. I love it. I love being a missionary.

We have started trying to have sports night as a branch that we bring our investigators and less actives to and we've just this week started having them at Ngamotu Beach. This week the Elders decided to have everyone play water balloon volleyball, which is apparently an American sport because we had to explain it to everyone including Sister Baird. (: Well, that started of all nice and civil and then the Elders had to run off to get more water balloons to fill up. So, we started helping them to fill up their balloons and little did I know it, but I was standing under the shower that they have for when people are done swimming and all of a sudden Elder Mitchell presses the button that turns it on and drenches me! And that just started an all out water war. It was so much fun.

Side Note: Sister Cardall and I are going to be playing a duet for a devotional that is coming up this coming Sunday so we've been practicing pretty much everyday in whatever time we have.

So, we had to leave sports night to go and practice the piano with Sister Cardall, so we were pretty wet at the time we were leaving, so we gathered up all of our stuff and started to leave. And Elder Mitchell decided to have all of the kids gang up on us and the absolutely drenched us just as we were leaving. So, we had to rush back to our flat to get changed and such. It was so fun, and now we will seek to get revenge on our beloved Zone Leaders. (:

Life is so good. All you need is the Gospel. Believe it. Love it. (:

I love you all so very much.

6823-> The front of a birthday card that we made for one of very favourite members this week. (: