Kia Ora Whanau ko Ehoa!

This week has been a really good week. I have been really happy to be a missionary this week. 

So, this week was good in a lot of ways, and bad in others! But that's the way of life.

We found 7 new investigators this week. however, 4 of those went to the new area in our ward. We were proselyting in their soon-to-be area, and found 4. Then they went there and found 3 more. Lol... However, 3 new investigators for us! We found a very large stack of teaching records that are really old. The oldest was 2004, and the latest was 2011. So, most of the people have moved out, but there are some that have become new investigators. 2 of the 3 that we get to keep were from this. This missionary work is taking off. 

Something that we are trying as of recently is giving a copy or more of the Book of Mormon to write their testimonies in. Then we will proselyte with those. That way, instead of our word being declared "by the mouth of two or three witnesses," it will be declared by the members as well. Because it's good to hand out BoM's, but it's even better when they include testimonies. So, that will be really good. The members are loving it. A lot of them are scared to do missionary work, or they don't know who they can talk with. So this will help them to catch the spirit of missionary work. :-)

We had a goodbye conference with Pres and S. Lekias. S. Lekias was really really sad about losing us. But they wished us the best. P.S. Do those photos of Zone Conference and all those other things get emailed to you? I've always just assumed that they do, without actually checking to see if they are. :-) Lots of exciting things. The Airport is now not in our mission, so we can never go home, and the MTC is not in the Auckland mission, so they can't ever go pick up missionaries! ;-) Lol...

Patrick, the Nigerian man that we were going to baptise this past weekend turned dodgey at the end of the week, and as a result, he was not baptised. Now he's in the Zone Leader's area. So, lots of the progressing investigators are theirs now, or no longer progressing. But we are managing. We'll pick back up the pieces, and we will turn this ward into a successful ward. It already is, but even more successful.

I just read the First Presidency Message on lds.org. It's really good. It's about walking in circles. It talks how, as human beings, we naturally walk in circles. Literally. Without the guidance of the sun or the stars to get out bearings, we naturally walk in a circle. So, P. Utchdorf talked about how two landmarks that we can use to get our bearings. The Scriptures, and General conference. These give us modern revelation for everything in our life. I would like to add two more. Sacrament meeting, and also Prayer. These landmarks help us to overcome any trials of life that we may have. 

We are having great success, and we are looking forward to our last week in the New Zealand Auckland Mission. New Zealand Hamiton Mission, here we come!

Arohanui,

E. Staheli

This Picture is particularly late in coming. But this is Patrick's family. They are now in Malaysia

Kia Ora!

This week has been really good. 

Miracles on, not 49th street but, Tralee Place! Moving on...

Kia Ora!
This week was really good. This past week, like I mentioned before, was transfers. Nobody in the entire Zone moved. So, we are all in the Hamilton Mission now. Awesome! 

This past week was really great! 

We had 3 baptisms. Pictured Below. It was really good. The water was really cold though. Lol... But it was a really good experience. Their Mom (a Former Investigator), was very effected. She hopefully felt the Spirit.

This week is transfers, and most likely nobody will be moving. But this transfer will decide which mission we are in. Hamilton or Auckland. It's looking like Hamilton for me, but who knows? Could be a surprise. We shall see.

Anyways, In the end of Alma, the Nephites try this sneaky Tactic to free some of their prisoners. They send a person who is a Lamanite by birth (whose name is Laman. Ooh. that fits.) to give them some wine.
It was drugged, so they all pass out. They wake up and the prisoners have weapons and so do the nephites surrounding them. They lose. Nephites 1, Lamanites 0. So, the Lamanites, being very original, decide to try the same thing. Then comes these verses.

30 And many times did they attempt to administer of their wine to the Nephites, that they might destroy them with poison or with drunkenness.
 31 But behold, the Nephites were not slow to aremember the Lord their God in this their time of affliction. They could not be taken in their snares; yea, they would not partake of their wine, save they had first given to some of the Lamanite prisoners.
 32 And they were thus cautious that no poison should be administered among them; for if their wine would poison a Lamanite it would also poison a Nephite; and thus they did try all their liquors.

So, for us, are we cautious to not be administered poison through the things that we let into our house? Because, if it would poison a Lamanite, it would poison a Nephite. i.e. If it can poison the weak in the world, it can poison you, if you let it. So, be cautious what you allow in.

Love you all!

E. Staheli