Sunday, February 15, 2015

What A Week! - Email Dated: 15-Feb-2015

My dearest Whanau,

This had to be the most crazy week of my entire life. I spent three days down in Hawera, South Taranaki with Sister Mihaere and Sister Thalman. Then I spent a day in Stratford with Sister Taylor from Riverton, Utah! It is crazy how many people we know that are the same. And I realised why she always seemed so familiar to me! She would come in to In-N-Out with her family, so I'm so sure that I would have seen her there! It is such a small world.

It is a little bit hard being away from your assigned area for such a long period of time. So I am really glad to be back. I am really grateful that Sister Baird is the one and only companion I'll ever kill off. (: 

So, transfer calls came on Tuesday afternoon. I found out that I was staying in New Plymouth and I was getting Sister Perry. Much like Perry the Platypus. (: I had no idea who she was, but Sister Thalman did and so she told me all about her! I was really excited to meet her. 

Thursday came around and it was time to pick up our companions. They all met us at our flat and I met Sister Perry. She is just the cutest thing in the world. We get along so well and we have already seen a heap of miracles together. It's been so good! I am so excited to work with her. 

So, I am still truckin' through the Book of Mormon and seriously it has been the most revalatory experience that I have ever had in the Book of Mormon. I love it. It is absolutely amazing. I am so grateful for it. Joseph Smith truly is a prophet of God and he truly did translate it by the Power of God. 

Which brings me to another story. For the past little while we have been trying to get a hold of a family name the Skinners. They are a less active couple that our Branch Mission Leader asked us to contact, but each time we went there, they weren't home. Yesterday night after our dinner appointment, we felt really strongly that we should go to the Skinner's home and visit them. So we get there and to be honest, I didn't have that much faith in them opening the door for us, but we pressed on. And, boy, did the Father have plans to help strengthen my faith. Sister Skinner opened the door and looked absolutely shocked to see us. She invited us in and asked us to sit down. We started to get to know her and it was going really well. They had a pretty flash TV, so we asked if we could share a Mormon Message before we went, but for some reason, I could not figure out how to work it even though I was clicking all of the right buttons. 

Heavenly Father's plan is PERFECT!!

Sister Perry instead shared a scripture from Alma 32 and all of a sudden Sister Skinner just opened up to us and we found out #1 what her concern was and #2 why the hard drive in the TV wasn't working. Her concern was that she felt totally alienated at church, which is totally sad. She also said that she felt like her culture, the Maori culture, was not involved in the church at all. Luckily, Sister Baird had taught me a little bit about how the Maori people were descended from the people in the Book of Mormon and so we were able to challenge Sister Skinner to read the Book of Mormon and look for the similarities in her culture as well. Sister Perry and I were totally teaching by the Spirit. There are those awesome lessons where you just know that the Lord is speaking through you and I know for sure that that was one of those lessons. Sister Skinner is fluent in Maori and we are going to take her one tomorrow morning. It was amazing to see her countenance change in the short while we were there. I LOVE THE GOSPEL!!!!!

You are all going to be angry with me, but I don't actually have any new photos, but I'll send some of the others that I couldn't send last week. (: 

I love you all truly so much and I am so grateful for all of the support that you have given me as I've been out here. I love being a missionary. I love having a companion to support me and help me learn and grow. I am so grateful for everything that the Lord has taught me while I've been His servant and I am excited for growing and learning more while I still have time left. 

7598-> All of us eating Pita Pit. (:
 7555-> Bridge time!

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