This week was such a roller coaster! So many cool stories that I have to share!
So, on Tuesday we had District Meeting! Let's just say that I miss my last district! But we have some good missionaries. After District Meeting, the Sister Training Leader came and asked us if we were busy for the day and we didn't have any set appointments so we let her know that we were free.
So, it turns out that Sister Petersen was in the hospital because of an unknown illness and her companion is none other than Sister Fisher! Well, they had some set appointments and since Sister Petersen couldn't leave the hospital, Sister Fisher needed a companion to go with her for the day. So, this is where it gets really fun...Sister Laban and Sister Clarke drove Sister Fisher, Sister Amituanai, and I to Elder Christie and Elder Bishop's flat to pick up Sister Fisher's car. Afterwards, Sister Fisher, Sister Amituanai, and I went out to lunch..we got fish 'n' chips, yummy. (: Then we went to pick up Sister Curtis, a member to go to the lesson with us. Well, we got to the lesson and the investigator wasn't home! We were so sad. Then we had to take Sister Fisher back to the hospital to be with her companion, but Sister Amituanai and I had no way home. So, Sister Fisher called the Zone Leaders and the Zone Leaders called the Assistants and it was decided that we would drop Sister Fisher off at the hospital and I would drive her car back into our area. MORALE OF THE STORY: I had a car...(: But wait, it gets crazier...so, Sister Amituanai and I worked in our area for about 2 hours and then we had dinner at 4:30 with some of my favourite members, the Ngamanu Family, and then at 5:30, we went BACK to the hospital to pick up Sister Fisher for a dinner appointment that she had. Sister Fisher had called the Zone Leaders and asked if we could go on exchange so Sister Petersen didn't have to be alone. Sister Amituanai and Sister Petersen stayed at the hospital and Sister Fisher and I went on exchanges. (: The dinner appointment was a lesson with an investigator as well, so we had yummy Mexican Food and then had a wonderful lesson with Lucy. She doesn't believe in God and she is a very literal thinker, so it was a hard lesson, but I was blessed to be teaching with Sister Fisher and we did a really good job! After the lesson, which took way longer than planned, we drove back to the hospital to drop Sister Fisher off and on the way there, the Zone Leaders called and told us to just take Sister Fisher to the Sister Training Leader's flat and then drive the car home. Sister Amituanai said that she knew the way home, so I wasn't really worried about getting home. Well, nek minit...we are so lost and it's like 9:25 and we are meant to be home at 9:30. So, I made Sister Ami call the Zone Leaders and they try for like 10 minutes to find us and finally we make it back to their flat and then they drove us home..by the time we actually got home it was 10 o'clock. And the Zone Leaders were so mad! I think Sister Ami felt really bad that she got us lost. But it was such a fun adventure! I loved having a car...especially driving on the other side of the road. (: It was awesome.
Well, that was a novelistic story, eh? Haha, well the ward that I'm serving in, the Lake Rotoroa Ward is ONTO IT AS! They are becoming such a missionary oriented ward! For example, in Relief Society, Sister MacTavish gave an AMAZING lesson on missionary work and was just super blunt about the fact that the Relief Society sisters were being lazy in their missionary work and how they needed to pick it up! So, Sister Halbert passed around a calendar for the sisters to put down what day the could go out with us...every day is filled! So, we'll be the most onto it ward in the stake in no time!
Bishop Thomsen sang a song in sacrament meeting, he sang A Poor Wayfaring Man, and I had no idea he could sing! And let me tell you....HE COULD SING. He has a practically angelic voice and he brought the Spirit in so strong! It was awesome. (:
Anyway, I didn't take any pictures this week, I slacked...shame on me, but I'll get better! Don't worry. (: I love you all so much! Have a really awesome week! Share the gospel with one of your friends this week and then let me know how it goes! (:
With much Aroha,
Sister Rachel Pearce (:
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Malo Soifua! (Email Dated: March 16, 2014)
Happy Monday, everyone! I hope this email finds you all in tip top shape! (: This past week was pretty crazy! Sister Leung-wo and I are no longer companions and I guess I never really realized the meaning of companion unity until her...I actually feel like I've lost a part of myself not being companions with her anymore...I never really understood what Christlike love was until I did EVERYTHING in my power to help her. And I never knew that I could fall in love with a tiny New Zealand town called Pukekohe. Pukekohe will always have a small part of my heart...may bigger than a small, but there's definitely a place in my heart for that beautiful little town. I can safely say that Sister Leung-wo will forever be one of my greatest friends. (:
Well, since I know you are all curious as about transfers, I'll tell you...in a minute. (: Muahaha, the last night we had in our area, Ruby and Blaire threw us this going away partay! (: They ordered Pizza Hut, hot chips, drinks, got desserts, the works. It was AWESOME. (: Then we took some family photos, which are attached...(: (4723 is a nice one...4724 is our gang signs one...4728 is our awesome Maori one.) I love that family! They became like my family away from home while I was serving there...even now they are still like family. (:
Okay, now it's transfer time...So, my best friend and I have been separated from each other and I've been moved to the Glenview Stake, Lake Rotoroa Ward, with Sister Amituanai. Sister Ami is from Samoa and she's trying really hard! Her English is shaky and she doesn't understand sometimes, but she is trying. we don't really have much in common yet, but I'm sure that we will eventually! She is teaching me Samoan and I am teaching her English...O le Atua o lo tatou Tama Fa'alelagi...that just means God is Our Heavenly Father..nothing special. (: Our ward is really awesome! The members are so keen to do missionary work and we are so excited to be able to help them in this endeavor! Our bishop is Bishop Thomsen and he is from Utah originally! So, that's pretty awesome. (: Our ward is really keen on feeding us as well...so it's a good thing that I'm riding a bike again, eh? (: FUN FACT: There is a Pearce family is our ward! But, alas, they spell their name Pearse...): But it's so cool, Sister Pearse said that she's adopted me as a daughter already. (:
I don't know if yous heard about it, but we had a cyclone here! My very first cyclone and it was...not that bad! It was cold and windy and pretty rainy, but we were still able to get out and work for the most part...(: We actually had a service project with our district in the rain and it was so fun! We did yard work and the lady we did it for invited us into her house afterwards, but we were all drenched..we ended up just standing in the kitchen and we sang her I Am A Child of God, but it was still so cool! Haha, the night before the cyclone hit, our zone leaders called us and they were all serious, "There's a cyclone coming and all the missionaries are being evacuated!" And I didn't know, so I totally believed them! Nek minit, they were just kidding, so I felt a little dumb, but not that dumb. Haha, they just told us to keep our windows closed and fill up containers of water just in case. It was a little to intense for how lame the storm actually was, but better to be safe than sorry!
Well, I'd just like to wish my dad a HAPPY BIRTHDAY this week. (: I'm so grateful for my dad and all that he does for my family and I! So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I LOVE YOU!!
4737-> Sister Amituanai and I (:
3236-> And a final one of me and my best friend. (:
I love you all!!! (:
Well, since I know you are all curious as about transfers, I'll tell you...in a minute. (: Muahaha, the last night we had in our area, Ruby and Blaire threw us this going away partay! (: They ordered Pizza Hut, hot chips, drinks, got desserts, the works. It was AWESOME. (: Then we took some family photos, which are attached...(: (4723 is a nice one...4724 is our gang signs one...4728 is our awesome Maori one.) I love that family! They became like my family away from home while I was serving there...even now they are still like family. (:
Okay, now it's transfer time...So, my best friend and I have been separated from each other and I've been moved to the Glenview Stake, Lake Rotoroa Ward, with Sister Amituanai. Sister Ami is from Samoa and she's trying really hard! Her English is shaky and she doesn't understand sometimes, but she is trying. we don't really have much in common yet, but I'm sure that we will eventually! She is teaching me Samoan and I am teaching her English...O le Atua o lo tatou Tama Fa'alelagi...that just means God is Our Heavenly Father..nothing special. (: Our ward is really awesome! The members are so keen to do missionary work and we are so excited to be able to help them in this endeavor! Our bishop is Bishop Thomsen and he is from Utah originally! So, that's pretty awesome. (: Our ward is really keen on feeding us as well...so it's a good thing that I'm riding a bike again, eh? (: FUN FACT: There is a Pearce family is our ward! But, alas, they spell their name Pearse...): But it's so cool, Sister Pearse said that she's adopted me as a daughter already. (:
I don't know if yous heard about it, but we had a cyclone here! My very first cyclone and it was...not that bad! It was cold and windy and pretty rainy, but we were still able to get out and work for the most part...(: We actually had a service project with our district in the rain and it was so fun! We did yard work and the lady we did it for invited us into her house afterwards, but we were all drenched..we ended up just standing in the kitchen and we sang her I Am A Child of God, but it was still so cool! Haha, the night before the cyclone hit, our zone leaders called us and they were all serious, "There's a cyclone coming and all the missionaries are being evacuated!" And I didn't know, so I totally believed them! Nek minit, they were just kidding, so I felt a little dumb, but not that dumb. Haha, they just told us to keep our windows closed and fill up containers of water just in case. It was a little to intense for how lame the storm actually was, but better to be safe than sorry!
Well, I'd just like to wish my dad a HAPPY BIRTHDAY this week. (: I'm so grateful for my dad and all that he does for my family and I! So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I LOVE YOU!!
4737-> Sister Amituanai and I (:
I love you all!!! (:
Sunday, March 9, 2014
I Desire the Fire!!
This week was AWESOME! It started out on Monday and Sister Leung-wo and I just shopped around Pukekohe because the rest of our District was off doing their own thing. It was so fun! We printed out pictures and just hung out...ate some fish and chips (yummy(; )
Tuesday, we had service with one of our investigators. She's going to be having a baby soon, so she wanted some help cleaning her house. Let. Me. Tell. You. She NEEDED help cleaning her house. We spent a LOT of time cleaning just her kitchen and then her bathroom..it was a lot of manual labor, but it was SO fun. (: We got to know her really well and we found out a couple of her concerns. So, that was really effective. And I got to scrub a floor on my hands and knees...which I've always wanted to do. I felt a lot like Cinderella.
This Thursday we had zone meeting and it was so AMAZING! We talked about so many different things and I learned HEAPS! A couple of things that stood out to me go as follows: "I desire the fire!!" "The Book of Mormon is a testifier AND a converter." "There are 4 steps to conversion: 1. Desire, 2. Works, 3. Prayer, 4. Trust in the Lord" "Move from THINKING to DOING!" "Don't be satisfied being at the level you're at."
Sorry this email isn't long, but I am just so good that I don't have much to say on the matter! I am getting transferred this week, I'm not sure where or who my new companion is going to be, but I will definitely fill all yous in next week. (: I am still in love with New Zealand and the people here! Here's a motivating quote to get you through the week..."Though storm clouds may gather, though the rains may pour down upon us, our knowledge of the gospel and our love of Heavenly Father and of our Saviour will comfort and sustain us and bring joy to our hearts as we walk uprightly and keep the commandments...my beloved brothers and sisters, FEAR NOT. Be of good cheer. The Future is as bright as our faith."
xoxo Sister Pearce. (:
I totally forgot about pictures...
3455 is Us and a newly wed couple from our ward; Jack and Liz Stanford
3444 is us and (left to right) John Tangi, Ephraim Aupouri, David Tangi, Bailey Allendar, and Azeal Tangi.
3117 is Blaire and I getting our nails done. (:
3316 is Sister Leung-wo and I in the middle of the road before we had to go home. Sister Leung-wo has a bad habit of laying in the road when no cars are around. (:
3236 is a selfie of Sister Leung-wo and I...
Tuesday, we had service with one of our investigators. She's going to be having a baby soon, so she wanted some help cleaning her house. Let. Me. Tell. You. She NEEDED help cleaning her house. We spent a LOT of time cleaning just her kitchen and then her bathroom..it was a lot of manual labor, but it was SO fun. (: We got to know her really well and we found out a couple of her concerns. So, that was really effective. And I got to scrub a floor on my hands and knees...which I've always wanted to do. I felt a lot like Cinderella.
This Thursday we had zone meeting and it was so AMAZING! We talked about so many different things and I learned HEAPS! A couple of things that stood out to me go as follows: "I desire the fire!!" "The Book of Mormon is a testifier AND a converter." "There are 4 steps to conversion: 1. Desire, 2. Works, 3. Prayer, 4. Trust in the Lord" "Move from THINKING to DOING!" "Don't be satisfied being at the level you're at."
Sorry this email isn't long, but I am just so good that I don't have much to say on the matter! I am getting transferred this week, I'm not sure where or who my new companion is going to be, but I will definitely fill all yous in next week. (: I am still in love with New Zealand and the people here! Here's a motivating quote to get you through the week..."Though storm clouds may gather, though the rains may pour down upon us, our knowledge of the gospel and our love of Heavenly Father and of our Saviour will comfort and sustain us and bring joy to our hearts as we walk uprightly and keep the commandments...my beloved brothers and sisters, FEAR NOT. Be of good cheer. The Future is as bright as our faith."
xoxo Sister Pearce. (:
I totally forgot about pictures...
3455 is Us and a newly wed couple from our ward; Jack and Liz Stanford
3117 is Blaire and I getting our nails done. (:
3316 is Sister Leung-wo and I in the middle of the road before we had to go home. Sister Leung-wo has a bad habit of laying in the road when no cars are around. (:
3236 is a selfie of Sister Leung-wo and I...
Kia Ora, Whanau!! (Email Dated: March 2, 2014)
THIS. WEEK. WAS. AWESOME!
Most of this week, anyway. (: I have developed some sort of hideous cold and it just won't go away! But I'm not letting that stop me! I am going to keep trucking on! And doing the work. (: Because that's what I came here to do! (: I love this work and time is actually FLYING by. It feel like just yesterday that I was dropped off at the MTC. Before I came out I heard that the mission feels a lot like a dream and so you have to make the most of it and I can actually testify to you that that is true. It is a wonderful dream, but a dream that is going to end all too quickly. (:
So, this week I experienced one of the weirdest things that I think I'll ever experience on my mission. It all started on Tuesday when we called Elder Hester and asked him a question. After he answered the question, he told us that he needed to talk to us about something. It turns out that Sister Leung-wo had gotten reported for being "too flirty" and he told her to back off a little bit and all that jazz. Well, we asked who had reported, just so that we would know how to fix the problem and it was one of the families that we had invited to our family home evening nights. We'll call him M1 and his wife W1, just to keep the privacy. Well, a couple days passed and Thursday rolled around and we got a call from Elder Hester saying that he was driving out from Waiuku to have a meeting with us. Well, the meeting rolled around and we met at the chapel and Elder Hester told Sister Leung-wo that he had gotten more reports about her flirting. So, Elder Hester told us to go and apologize to M1 and W1 and tell them that it wouldn't happen again. So, we did that. Moral of the story...we are no longer allowed to visit or associate with that family. Things were just getting out of hand and so Elder Hester just told us not to go near them anymore. It's actually quite sad, and the reports that were turned in about Sister Leung-wo were mostly fake and made up to black mail...but it's all good. Move forward every day, eh?(:
So, thus far in New Zealand, I haven't really enjoyed Samoan food, but yesterday, we had the BEST feed! One of the part-member families in our ward, the Ah Sui family, fed us! It was SO good. They are Samoan and it was seriously so good! There was this egg plant dish that was so good! And they had chicken hearts that were so good. Funny story: chicken hearts taste like chicken! Who knew?! Then they had this meat that was SO GOOD! It was just chicken, but the way they cooked it, man, it was so good! Then there was this yum as crab salad that had huge chunks of DELICIOUS crab, tomatoes, capsicums, and lettuce. It was seriously so good! Then we had Ice Cream for dessert. (: Which is always yummy. (Reading over that paragraph I realize that I said, "so good," like 25 times, but it was a seriously stellar meal. (: )
I love the people here. I can't even believe how much I have learned and how much I have grown being here in New Zealand. When I first got my call, I knew that I loved the people and I knew that I was called by a prophet of God, but until you start serving and until you put your heart and soul into the work, you don't really understand how much you can love people! The people of New Zealand are so beautiful! And even though there are the ones that don't accept the message and the ones that are just flat out rude, the work still progresses! There are those people who are ready to accept the message, who have been prepared! And the part that is the most fun is when we find those people and their faces light up as they start to remember what they once knew! Even the sceptical people feel the spirit and they actually can't deny it! It's a beautiful thing. The Lord cares about every aspect of our lives, He really does. And so when we start to align our will with his will, we begin to see things with our spiritual eyes. We'll never be able to help people if we don't look with our spiritual eyes and hear with our spiritual ears. And even though it's sometimes really hard to look past outer appearances, everyone deserves the gospel! EVERYONE. (:
My companion, Sister Leung-wo, is really amazing! When we were first put together, we didn't get along. At all. There was always tension and just bad vibes between us, but these past two weeks, we have been getting along so well! We finally developed that understanding and that charity and love for each other and our whole companionship has changed from it. We finally developed that friendship that everyone talks about! We are able to feel the spirit more and we are definitely able to work better together. I can't believe the benefit that comes from being exactly obedient and loving your companion! Even our district has noticed the change, which in hindsight is kind of embarrassing, but it is still a really awesome feeling! We worked so hard for our companionship and our hard work paid off. It's a little disappointing because we could've gotten along this whole time, but we just chose to be stubborn. But! That is the past and now we are getting along really well. Even though there are some major cultural differences, it's such a fun learning experience! No one wants to be miserable and the way to be happy is to love your companion. (: Because you are literally with them 24/7. (:
4544 -> This is (from left to right) Sister Samataua, Sister Leung-wo, Sister Me, and Sister Bird our Sister Training Leader. (: This was after dinner at the Ah Sui's house.
4541 -> This is after our little jaunt in the pouring rain...we were literally sopping wet. I could've wrung my skirt out if I had wanted to.
Most of this week, anyway. (: I have developed some sort of hideous cold and it just won't go away! But I'm not letting that stop me! I am going to keep trucking on! And doing the work. (: Because that's what I came here to do! (: I love this work and time is actually FLYING by. It feel like just yesterday that I was dropped off at the MTC. Before I came out I heard that the mission feels a lot like a dream and so you have to make the most of it and I can actually testify to you that that is true. It is a wonderful dream, but a dream that is going to end all too quickly. (:
So, this week I experienced one of the weirdest things that I think I'll ever experience on my mission. It all started on Tuesday when we called Elder Hester and asked him a question. After he answered the question, he told us that he needed to talk to us about something. It turns out that Sister Leung-wo had gotten reported for being "too flirty" and he told her to back off a little bit and all that jazz. Well, we asked who had reported, just so that we would know how to fix the problem and it was one of the families that we had invited to our family home evening nights. We'll call him M1 and his wife W1, just to keep the privacy. Well, a couple days passed and Thursday rolled around and we got a call from Elder Hester saying that he was driving out from Waiuku to have a meeting with us. Well, the meeting rolled around and we met at the chapel and Elder Hester told Sister Leung-wo that he had gotten more reports about her flirting. So, Elder Hester told us to go and apologize to M1 and W1 and tell them that it wouldn't happen again. So, we did that. Moral of the story...we are no longer allowed to visit or associate with that family. Things were just getting out of hand and so Elder Hester just told us not to go near them anymore. It's actually quite sad, and the reports that were turned in about Sister Leung-wo were mostly fake and made up to black mail...but it's all good. Move forward every day, eh?(:
So, thus far in New Zealand, I haven't really enjoyed Samoan food, but yesterday, we had the BEST feed! One of the part-member families in our ward, the Ah Sui family, fed us! It was SO good. They are Samoan and it was seriously so good! There was this egg plant dish that was so good! And they had chicken hearts that were so good. Funny story: chicken hearts taste like chicken! Who knew?! Then they had this meat that was SO GOOD! It was just chicken, but the way they cooked it, man, it was so good! Then there was this yum as crab salad that had huge chunks of DELICIOUS crab, tomatoes, capsicums, and lettuce. It was seriously so good! Then we had Ice Cream for dessert. (: Which is always yummy. (Reading over that paragraph I realize that I said, "so good," like 25 times, but it was a seriously stellar meal. (: )
I love the people here. I can't even believe how much I have learned and how much I have grown being here in New Zealand. When I first got my call, I knew that I loved the people and I knew that I was called by a prophet of God, but until you start serving and until you put your heart and soul into the work, you don't really understand how much you can love people! The people of New Zealand are so beautiful! And even though there are the ones that don't accept the message and the ones that are just flat out rude, the work still progresses! There are those people who are ready to accept the message, who have been prepared! And the part that is the most fun is when we find those people and their faces light up as they start to remember what they once knew! Even the sceptical people feel the spirit and they actually can't deny it! It's a beautiful thing. The Lord cares about every aspect of our lives, He really does. And so when we start to align our will with his will, we begin to see things with our spiritual eyes. We'll never be able to help people if we don't look with our spiritual eyes and hear with our spiritual ears. And even though it's sometimes really hard to look past outer appearances, everyone deserves the gospel! EVERYONE. (:
My companion, Sister Leung-wo, is really amazing! When we were first put together, we didn't get along. At all. There was always tension and just bad vibes between us, but these past two weeks, we have been getting along so well! We finally developed that understanding and that charity and love for each other and our whole companionship has changed from it. We finally developed that friendship that everyone talks about! We are able to feel the spirit more and we are definitely able to work better together. I can't believe the benefit that comes from being exactly obedient and loving your companion! Even our district has noticed the change, which in hindsight is kind of embarrassing, but it is still a really awesome feeling! We worked so hard for our companionship and our hard work paid off. It's a little disappointing because we could've gotten along this whole time, but we just chose to be stubborn. But! That is the past and now we are getting along really well. Even though there are some major cultural differences, it's such a fun learning experience! No one wants to be miserable and the way to be happy is to love your companion. (: Because you are literally with them 24/7. (:
4544 -> This is (from left to right) Sister Samataua, Sister Leung-wo, Sister Me, and Sister Bird our Sister Training Leader. (: This was after dinner at the Ah Sui's house.
4541 -> This is after our little jaunt in the pouring rain...we were literally sopping wet. I could've wrung my skirt out if I had wanted to.
Thursday, February 27, 2014
There Can Be Miracles... (Feb 23 Email)
HOLY LLAMAS! This week has been crazy and spiritual and fun! I'm not really sure why it was so rocky for us to get to this point and I'm not sure I'll ever be entirely sure, but now that we've gotten to this point of "getting along" I literally don't ever want to leave! But I can honestly say that good things come to those who wait. Sometimes it take almost 2 1/2 months to get good, but they do come!
So, this week we did a mini photo shoot at our investigators house. (: They wanted to see how good we would look as Maoris. If ya'll didn't know...Maoris are brown and I am white, but Tainui did the photos in black and white so no one would know what colour I actually am. So, there are just a few from our day as Maoris. (:
So, I read this talk, it's called the Fourth Missionary and it actually change my life. Ya'll should read it because even not as missionary it will change the way you look at life. One quote that I really like from it goes as follows, "Just give it up. Surrender your will to Him. Unconditionally. Withhold nothing. Turn it all over to Him; all of your desires, wishes, ambitions, dreams and hopes. Be true and faithful in your head and in your heart, not just in your behavior. Trust in Him. Trust Him who knows all things...who has all power...whose love for you is perfect. Trust Him, who alone suffered, paid, and atoned for sins and for your weaknesses as well. Trust Him. That He will make of you, immeasurably more than what you will ever, ever, in all eternity, make of yourself. He will create of you a masterpiece. You will create only a smudge. You will create an ordinary man. HE WILL CREATE A GOD." And there is the easiest way to do things. The easiest way to forget about ourselves is to lose ourselves in the Lord's work. I haven't been out long, but for the amount of time that I have been out, I have seen it work time and time again. If I lose myself, I am happy. If I am focused on myself, I am miserable.
I think I have mentioned this before, but a mission is the hardest fun I have ever had. I have met so many amazing people that I never would have met if I wouldn't have come on a mission. The world is a much bigger place than I ever realized. Growing up in Utah, we kind of just live in our own little bubble of nothingness, but the world is a big as place! I am learning so many things and I feel like I am finally growing up a little bit...not much, but a little bit. (: I'm loving all the experiences I'm having, both hard and easy, both fun and scary.
KIA KAHA!!!!!!
Arohanui,
Sister Rachel Pearce
No Photo Descriptions this week, but at least we got photos:
So, this week we did a mini photo shoot at our investigators house. (: They wanted to see how good we would look as Maoris. If ya'll didn't know...Maoris are brown and I am white, but Tainui did the photos in black and white so no one would know what colour I actually am. So, there are just a few from our day as Maoris. (:
So, I read this talk, it's called the Fourth Missionary and it actually change my life. Ya'll should read it because even not as missionary it will change the way you look at life. One quote that I really like from it goes as follows, "Just give it up. Surrender your will to Him. Unconditionally. Withhold nothing. Turn it all over to Him; all of your desires, wishes, ambitions, dreams and hopes. Be true and faithful in your head and in your heart, not just in your behavior. Trust in Him. Trust Him who knows all things...who has all power...whose love for you is perfect. Trust Him, who alone suffered, paid, and atoned for sins and for your weaknesses as well. Trust Him. That He will make of you, immeasurably more than what you will ever, ever, in all eternity, make of yourself. He will create of you a masterpiece. You will create only a smudge. You will create an ordinary man. HE WILL CREATE A GOD." And there is the easiest way to do things. The easiest way to forget about ourselves is to lose ourselves in the Lord's work. I haven't been out long, but for the amount of time that I have been out, I have seen it work time and time again. If I lose myself, I am happy. If I am focused on myself, I am miserable.
I think I have mentioned this before, but a mission is the hardest fun I have ever had. I have met so many amazing people that I never would have met if I wouldn't have come on a mission. The world is a much bigger place than I ever realized. Growing up in Utah, we kind of just live in our own little bubble of nothingness, but the world is a big as place! I am learning so many things and I feel like I am finally growing up a little bit...not much, but a little bit. (: I'm loving all the experiences I'm having, both hard and easy, both fun and scary.
KIA KAHA!!!!!!
Arohanui,
Sister Rachel Pearce
No Photo Descriptions this week, but at least we got photos:
Bump, Set, Spike! (Feb 16 Email)
This week has been fun/hard/exhausting/spiritual. But we'll just focus on the fun aspect for now, eh? (: Last P-Day, we played volleyball with our district and it was seriously so fun!! Ya'll know me and you probably know that I suck at all things sporty, but you'll be pleased to hear that I actually did, surprisingly well! Now, Sister Leung-wo, on the other hand is so good at all sports! So, it's a little hard for me to play when she is so darn good, but this week I learned that I have talents and abilities that make ME unique and special. I'm learning more and more every day to love myself. (: But anyway, so sport with the district was really fun! Then we had family home evening with Ruby and Blaire's family and played volleyball some more. It definitely didn't help that it was a seriously hot day, but by the end of it my arms and legs hurt so badly. (; It was wonderful!
On Tuesday, we had District Meeting! I seriously love District Meeting. (: AND!! It was Elder Hester's first time leading our District Meeting. Needless to say, it was one of the greatest District Meetings that I've ever been too. I haven't been to many, but this was really really great. We talked about the importance of effective friendshares. Which is basically the lesson we teach members when we go over to their houses. We did some awesome roleplays helping us to get better at doing this! We also talked about having effective companion studies in which we can plan for our day and the people we'll be seeing. Elder Brann shared this awesome alliteration...Prior Planning Prevents Poor, Pitiful Performance.
This week we had companionship exchanges with Sister Bird and Sister Samataua. At first I was dreading it, but when it actually happened, it was one of the greatest things that has happened so far on my mission. Sister Bird slept the night with me in our flat and Sister Leung-wo went with Sister Samataua to Tuakau. I am so grateful that I got the chance to speak with Sister Bird. I got so many things off my chest and I literally felt so much better afterwards. (: I learned so much from Sister Bird! So much. She taught me that WE. ARE. MISSIONARIES. It is our job to talk to EVERYONE. Who are we to take the chance to hear the gospel away from anyone? We are called to be missionaries in behalf of Jesus Christ! Would he pass someone on the street just because of their appearance? No. Would he pass someone because they smell yucky? No. And neither should we! Those aren't the greatest examples, but...give me a break. (:
This week I had the awesome opportunity to hear Elder Russell M. Nelson speak! He came to Hamilton and spoke to the whole of our mission. (: But the story leading up to that is one of...not funness. (: Because the conference was scheduled to start at 9 the next morning, all the Pukekohe missionaries we assigned to sleep in flats of Papakura missionaries. So, on Friday night, we went up to Papakura and slept in Sister Pula and Sister Fiu's flat. Their flat was pretty nice, not the greatest, but it was alright. We were meant to be at the chapel before 6 the next morning, so we went to bed at 10:00 and woke up at 4:00 in the morning. It was TERRIBLE. So early. I thought 6:30 was early...nek minit. But it was so worth it in the end! We met at a chapel in Temple View and studied for about 45 minutes before the guests of honour arrived. In the party were Elder and Sister Russell M. Nelson, President and Sister Hamula (Pacific Area President), Brother and Sister Thompson (significance...unknown(; ), President and Sister Cezarian (President of the Wellington Mission), and probably the coolest ones of all, President and Sister Rudd. (: Then, as a mission, we all got the opportunity to shake hands with every single one of them. IT WAS SO COOL!!!!!!!! Oh! And President Rudd's father, Brother Glenn L. Rudd. He was a missionary under Michael Cowley, Mission President of the Auckland Mission for a time, Hamilton Temple President, and a General Authority. This man is absolutely amazing.
So, all of the guests of honour bore their testimonies and then Sister Nelson spoke and then Elder Nelson. Something that he said that stood out to me was "If you have joy, notify your faces!" So, basically, we can't be walking around looking all depressed. If we are actually, truly happy then we should look it! People aren't going to want to learn about the gospel of happiness if we look depressed...so look happy!! SMILE!!!! (: Another thing was, "Endure in fidelity the covenants that you made in the Temple." Because really, that is ultimate goal, eh? Yes, Baptism is like, REALLY important, but really the goal is to receive the Temple Endowment and Sealing. Pretty awesome, huh? It's not something that I had thought about before. I learned so many other things from all of the people, but a lot of it was just like spiritual awesomeness. (:
Each week gets a little bit better, and I am constantly growing and getting better, but it is still a challenge! Every day is tiring and I fall into bed every night, but I love the work! I love watching people let Christ into their lives. I love letting Christ into MY life. And at this time, I challenge all of you to let Christ into your lives! I found an awesome quote from C.S. Lewis today and I want to share it with ya'll! This is him sort of saying what the Lord would say to us, "Give me all. I don't want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work: I WANT YOU. All of you. I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man, but to kill it. No half-measures will do. I don't want to only prune a branch here and another there; rather, I want the whole tree out. Hand it all over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them all over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self in my image. Give yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will shall become your will. My heart shall become your heart." So, I challenge you all to do this. Give your all to the Lord! And you will see the miracles that can come from it. I can testify of this. (: I love you all so much and I am so grateful for your constant love and support! God Be With You Till We Meet Again. :D
Arohanui,
Sister Pearce
On Tuesday, we had District Meeting! I seriously love District Meeting. (: AND!! It was Elder Hester's first time leading our District Meeting. Needless to say, it was one of the greatest District Meetings that I've ever been too. I haven't been to many, but this was really really great. We talked about the importance of effective friendshares. Which is basically the lesson we teach members when we go over to their houses. We did some awesome roleplays helping us to get better at doing this! We also talked about having effective companion studies in which we can plan for our day and the people we'll be seeing. Elder Brann shared this awesome alliteration...Prior Planning Prevents Poor, Pitiful Performance.
This week we had companionship exchanges with Sister Bird and Sister Samataua. At first I was dreading it, but when it actually happened, it was one of the greatest things that has happened so far on my mission. Sister Bird slept the night with me in our flat and Sister Leung-wo went with Sister Samataua to Tuakau. I am so grateful that I got the chance to speak with Sister Bird. I got so many things off my chest and I literally felt so much better afterwards. (: I learned so much from Sister Bird! So much. She taught me that WE. ARE. MISSIONARIES. It is our job to talk to EVERYONE. Who are we to take the chance to hear the gospel away from anyone? We are called to be missionaries in behalf of Jesus Christ! Would he pass someone on the street just because of their appearance? No. Would he pass someone because they smell yucky? No. And neither should we! Those aren't the greatest examples, but...give me a break. (:
This week I had the awesome opportunity to hear Elder Russell M. Nelson speak! He came to Hamilton and spoke to the whole of our mission. (: But the story leading up to that is one of...not funness. (: Because the conference was scheduled to start at 9 the next morning, all the Pukekohe missionaries we assigned to sleep in flats of Papakura missionaries. So, on Friday night, we went up to Papakura and slept in Sister Pula and Sister Fiu's flat. Their flat was pretty nice, not the greatest, but it was alright. We were meant to be at the chapel before 6 the next morning, so we went to bed at 10:00 and woke up at 4:00 in the morning. It was TERRIBLE. So early. I thought 6:30 was early...nek minit. But it was so worth it in the end! We met at a chapel in Temple View and studied for about 45 minutes before the guests of honour arrived. In the party were Elder and Sister Russell M. Nelson, President and Sister Hamula (Pacific Area President), Brother and Sister Thompson (significance...unknown(; ), President and Sister Cezarian (President of the Wellington Mission), and probably the coolest ones of all, President and Sister Rudd. (: Then, as a mission, we all got the opportunity to shake hands with every single one of them. IT WAS SO COOL!!!!!!!! Oh! And President Rudd's father, Brother Glenn L. Rudd. He was a missionary under Michael Cowley, Mission President of the Auckland Mission for a time, Hamilton Temple President, and a General Authority. This man is absolutely amazing.
So, all of the guests of honour bore their testimonies and then Sister Nelson spoke and then Elder Nelson. Something that he said that stood out to me was "If you have joy, notify your faces!" So, basically, we can't be walking around looking all depressed. If we are actually, truly happy then we should look it! People aren't going to want to learn about the gospel of happiness if we look depressed...so look happy!! SMILE!!!! (: Another thing was, "Endure in fidelity the covenants that you made in the Temple." Because really, that is ultimate goal, eh? Yes, Baptism is like, REALLY important, but really the goal is to receive the Temple Endowment and Sealing. Pretty awesome, huh? It's not something that I had thought about before. I learned so many other things from all of the people, but a lot of it was just like spiritual awesomeness. (:
Each week gets a little bit better, and I am constantly growing and getting better, but it is still a challenge! Every day is tiring and I fall into bed every night, but I love the work! I love watching people let Christ into their lives. I love letting Christ into MY life. And at this time, I challenge all of you to let Christ into your lives! I found an awesome quote from C.S. Lewis today and I want to share it with ya'll! This is him sort of saying what the Lord would say to us, "Give me all. I don't want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work: I WANT YOU. All of you. I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man, but to kill it. No half-measures will do. I don't want to only prune a branch here and another there; rather, I want the whole tree out. Hand it all over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them all over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self in my image. Give yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will shall become your will. My heart shall become your heart." So, I challenge you all to do this. Give your all to the Lord! And you will see the miracles that can come from it. I can testify of this. (: I love you all so much and I am so grateful for your constant love and support! God Be With You Till We Meet Again. :D
Arohanui,
Sister Pearce
Sunday, February 9, 2014
Life's a Climb, But the View's Great!
Last week was a really bumpy, rocky, rough road for me and looking back I can honestly say that Satan was trying his hardest to tear me down. It worked for a minute, but then I climbed back up! And the only way I did that was through Faith that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were going to help me, Hope that all was going to be okay, and Patience whilst enduring. I'm not sure what chucked me into the abyss of sadness, but I can testify that Jesus Christ's hand was what yanked me out of it. I can also testify that Jesus Christ's Atonement is for EVERYONE! It's for sinners, it's for depressed missionaries, it's for all the people who've ever felt sad or happy or confused or lonely. And this week, His Atonement was for me. I can't describe exactly what I went through last week and I don't think that anyone would want to hear, but the SECOND that I put my hand in Christ's hand, the SECOND I put my trust in Him, the hole I was in seemed so much smaller, brighter, and more friendly.
So, this week was HEAPS better than last week. (: It's still, in no way, perfect, but it is better! We had Zone Meeting this week and something they really stressed was that the Elders CANNOT counsel the Sisters. Not that anything inappropriate has happened, they were just stressing the fact that feelings come from feeling the Spirit together. And they just wanted us to like Sister Bird, and that story will come in just a few seconds. (: So, the morale of this story is that we have a really obedient District Leader, Elder Hester, who kept encouraging us to go to Sister Bird and talk to her. Well, on Saturday, Sister Leung-wo and I weren't really getting along in the best of ways, and I had no idea how to bring the Spirit back into our companionship. And for some reason, I just felt this prompting that I needed to call Sister Bird. So, putting aside my pride and my hurt, I called Sister Bird. I told her what was going on and that I had no idea what to do. Tender Mercy Moment: They were in Pukekohe getting Petrol, so she said that they would come over and help up out. So, Sister Samataua went in the room with Sister Leung-wo and Sister Bird and I talked in our lounge. I can seriously tell you that Sister Bird was called of God to be our Sister Training Leader for a reason. She helped so much and I was able to get so many things off my chest. I love Sister Bird now, and that is exactly what I needed to grow to love her. Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways. (:
So, yesterday, we had this awesome Pacific Area Presidency Leadership Training about working in unity with our wards and branches! It was such a good training and I learned so much about how the members can help in such a big way with conversions and retentions. And our Area President challenged us to read the Book of Mormon twice this year! I'm so excited to complete this commitment! And I also challenge all of yous, TO READ THE BOOK OF MORMON TWICE THIS YEAR! I'm assuming you'll all say yes, but I can promise you that as you do, your love for Jesus Christ will deepen and your conversion to the gospel with grow. I can promise you that you will come to know for yourself, that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God and that he translated the Book of Mormon by the power of God. I can promise you that you will come to know the Saviour in ways that you never thought you could. (:
Something else they have been encouraging a lot is Family History! I know that Family History seems cumbersome at times, but I can promise you that as you search out your ancestors, you will find a greater connection with them! You'll be able to come to know them as real people and grow to love them! The ward that I'm in right now, Pukekohe 1st Ward is an amazingly Family History centred ward. It's amazing to see how much they love to work on finding their family! And not only that, but they love to take the names to the temple, even though the temple is over an hour away. It's absolutely inspiring. (:
This week was a crazy spiritual week for me! And on the other side, it was just an awesome week! Our two investigators that don't want to marry their partners, they decided to get married! No, they didn't, but I got yous there, didn't I? Nah, what I was going to say was that they've just been teaching us a lot about Maori culture! I'm not sure if yous know what a Hangi is, but is a traditional Maori meal. (see 4465) So, what you see is Pumpkin, Kumara, Potatoes, Chicken, Stuffing, and Cabbage on the bottom. So, how you prepare it is you put the Pumpkin, Kumara, Potatoes, Chicken, and Stuffing into a huge as Cabbage leaf and then you rap it in foil. Traditionally, they dig a huge hole in the ground and the heat up rocks, coals, and then cook the Hangis in the ground, but since they couldn't dig a huge as hole in their yard, they just cooked them in the oven. (: But I'm telling you! It was so stinking good. (: And I'm not even joking with you.
Even though I have been going through a hard time, I can see the bright side! And I am learning so much from this trial! I have grown so much spiritually. Even though I haven't grown taller physically, something people here like to remind me of, as I am quite on the short side here, (: I have grown heaps spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and personally. I am loving the mission! And I will endure to the end! And not only endure, I will enjoy to the end. (:
Arohanui,
Sister Pearce
P.S. Yes, I did use a Hannah Montana quote as my subject line, but I'm sure you'll all get over it. (:
4467 -> This is the sunset after the Area Presidency Broadcast...I know you all just fell over our of it's beautifulness, but that's how they always are. It's absolutely beautiful.
4472 -> This is the room that I keep my suitcases and my clothes in, it's also where we keep our bikes. (:
4475 -> This is currently our torn up laundry room. Our landlord had some guys come and tear out our floor and now it's all sticky so we have to step on these gross as carpets. Some guy came to fix it up the other day, but the floor under the washing machine was completely rotted, so they have to come back on Thursday and replace the floor. Our flat is so old. (:
4478 -> These are our studying desks. (:
4479-> This is us. (:
4481 -> And this is...us. (:
4476 -> And a little out of order, here is our kitchen...it's actually really disgusting and we don't cook much, but it works. (:
So, this week was HEAPS better than last week. (: It's still, in no way, perfect, but it is better! We had Zone Meeting this week and something they really stressed was that the Elders CANNOT counsel the Sisters. Not that anything inappropriate has happened, they were just stressing the fact that feelings come from feeling the Spirit together. And they just wanted us to like Sister Bird, and that story will come in just a few seconds. (: So, the morale of this story is that we have a really obedient District Leader, Elder Hester, who kept encouraging us to go to Sister Bird and talk to her. Well, on Saturday, Sister Leung-wo and I weren't really getting along in the best of ways, and I had no idea how to bring the Spirit back into our companionship. And for some reason, I just felt this prompting that I needed to call Sister Bird. So, putting aside my pride and my hurt, I called Sister Bird. I told her what was going on and that I had no idea what to do. Tender Mercy Moment: They were in Pukekohe getting Petrol, so she said that they would come over and help up out. So, Sister Samataua went in the room with Sister Leung-wo and Sister Bird and I talked in our lounge. I can seriously tell you that Sister Bird was called of God to be our Sister Training Leader for a reason. She helped so much and I was able to get so many things off my chest. I love Sister Bird now, and that is exactly what I needed to grow to love her. Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways. (:
So, yesterday, we had this awesome Pacific Area Presidency Leadership Training about working in unity with our wards and branches! It was such a good training and I learned so much about how the members can help in such a big way with conversions and retentions. And our Area President challenged us to read the Book of Mormon twice this year! I'm so excited to complete this commitment! And I also challenge all of yous, TO READ THE BOOK OF MORMON TWICE THIS YEAR! I'm assuming you'll all say yes, but I can promise you that as you do, your love for Jesus Christ will deepen and your conversion to the gospel with grow. I can promise you that you will come to know for yourself, that Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God and that he translated the Book of Mormon by the power of God. I can promise you that you will come to know the Saviour in ways that you never thought you could. (:
Something else they have been encouraging a lot is Family History! I know that Family History seems cumbersome at times, but I can promise you that as you search out your ancestors, you will find a greater connection with them! You'll be able to come to know them as real people and grow to love them! The ward that I'm in right now, Pukekohe 1st Ward is an amazingly Family History centred ward. It's amazing to see how much they love to work on finding their family! And not only that, but they love to take the names to the temple, even though the temple is over an hour away. It's absolutely inspiring. (:
This week was a crazy spiritual week for me! And on the other side, it was just an awesome week! Our two investigators that don't want to marry their partners, they decided to get married! No, they didn't, but I got yous there, didn't I? Nah, what I was going to say was that they've just been teaching us a lot about Maori culture! I'm not sure if yous know what a Hangi is, but is a traditional Maori meal. (see 4465) So, what you see is Pumpkin, Kumara, Potatoes, Chicken, Stuffing, and Cabbage on the bottom. So, how you prepare it is you put the Pumpkin, Kumara, Potatoes, Chicken, and Stuffing into a huge as Cabbage leaf and then you rap it in foil. Traditionally, they dig a huge hole in the ground and the heat up rocks, coals, and then cook the Hangis in the ground, but since they couldn't dig a huge as hole in their yard, they just cooked them in the oven. (: But I'm telling you! It was so stinking good. (: And I'm not even joking with you.
Even though I have been going through a hard time, I can see the bright side! And I am learning so much from this trial! I have grown so much spiritually. Even though I haven't grown taller physically, something people here like to remind me of, as I am quite on the short side here, (: I have grown heaps spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and personally. I am loving the mission! And I will endure to the end! And not only endure, I will enjoy to the end. (:
Arohanui,
Sister Pearce
P.S. Yes, I did use a Hannah Montana quote as my subject line, but I'm sure you'll all get over it. (:
4467 -> This is the sunset after the Area Presidency Broadcast...I know you all just fell over our of it's beautifulness, but that's how they always are. It's absolutely beautiful.
4472 -> This is the room that I keep my suitcases and my clothes in, it's also where we keep our bikes. (:
4475 -> This is currently our torn up laundry room. Our landlord had some guys come and tear out our floor and now it's all sticky so we have to step on these gross as carpets. Some guy came to fix it up the other day, but the floor under the washing machine was completely rotted, so they have to come back on Thursday and replace the floor. Our flat is so old. (:
4478 -> These are our studying desks. (:
4479-> This is us. (:
4481 -> And this is...us. (:
4476 -> And a little out of order, here is our kitchen...it's actually really disgusting and we don't cook much, but it works. (:
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