January 2104 - 'Lord is it I?'

5 January 2015
Transfer 7- week 4!!!!

Zone P-day for sports!!

HAPPY NEW YEARS!! So we were the lame obedient missionaries who went to bed on time and were fast asleep by 10:35 pm. New years day we had a huge feed at Bishop's! Their family was late from the airport so it was a late lunch at 3:30pm and we went home and slept for our whole dinner break, it was basically the most genius thing in the world. 

Trekking through the 'jungle!'

We had the whole "New Year, New You" thing going on for a few days. Then realised it was sort of dumb, you don't need a New Year to change.  I LOVE how Christmas comes before New Years. It's all because of Christ that we can change!! We can have 2nd, 3rd 4th etc chances. It never ends, we are never beyond Christ's reach! Anyway, we decided to shake things up and do nothing we normally do for the last few days of the week. Our normal set appointments we see every week, we changed the days and times and we took a bunch of people off our contacting list and filled our day visiting formers and potentials and other places we felt prompted to go...

MIRACLE after MIRACLE..

Am I in the Philippines or the NZAM?

We now have 2 more families we are teaching, we found a massive less active family, and had a few people at church!! One guy who wants to be baptised, but sadly turns our he is in the Elders area. But hey, we're all on the same team!

"If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got"

Ofa Atu!!

Sister Heal

12 January 2015
Transfer 7 Week 5 

Sister Brown

TRADEOFFS!! Once again I was with the wonderful Sister Brown from SIDKNEE (see what I did there?) who I also like to call Jeffry R Holland, as she has mastered 'bold with love!' I have known her since the start of my mission so there were no 'awkward get to know you,' but we were able to get straight into the work and have an excellent, miraculous day.

SUNDAY!! We had 4 of our investigators at church and 6 less actives, was I a happy little missionary or? Such a good Sunday. Plus now we have afternoon church so when we finished - Party at the Lopatis! Well, it was a feed, but a good one at that.

The 'Tree of Life'

SERVICE!! We did service again for the family with all the twins. Had a lot of people come and help out. These kids are seriously the raddest kids you'll ever meet. Plus Emma is pregnant with more. 4 sets of twins in total!!! All under the age of 6. Craaazyyyyyyyyyy!

On a more spiritual note... Something I have studied a lot recently..1 Nephi chapter 16:2-4

Reminds me of the talk at the recent General Confrence "Lord, is it I?"

This work is the best!
Sister Heal

19 January 2015
Transfer 7 Week 6 -TRANSFER WEEK

So, It's like Wednesday at 2:30pm, we are in a lesson and our phone was blowing up with calls for transfer news. So we did what great missionaries do and we cut the lesson short! haha. We walk out on to the road and... "Sitser Faiva you are.. STAYING with sister Purcell (which was my new companion's old companion).... SIster Heal your going to... WHANGAREI!!!" I honestly got teary eyed out of happiness. Every missionary wants to serve in Whangarei or Kikohe. Its the promised land... the REAL New Zealand. Full of Maori people where everyone wears green stones and says 'Kia Ora..' and where everyone wears no shirts or shoes and have no teeth. I love it!!!

My new companion - Sister Dixon

I woke up at bajillion o'clock on Thursday and headed off to transfer meeting. Always a fun experience seeing President and all the other missionaries.  My new companion is.. SISTER DIXON!! A convert of 4 years from Brisbane!!! She has been out only a few month and is a little legend.  We are basically twins with very similar lives and personalities. So there is now 2 of me in the world, sorry about it everyone. What's hilarious, is because her old companion and my old companion are together (as we legit swapped places) and are like the same people.. and then me and her are the same... so it works out so wonderfully and beautifully. I have had zero sleep the last few days because, despite spending all day together it gets to 10:30pm and we can't help but talk more. It's great!

Whangarei is the BEST.  The drive up was B-E-A-U-tiful!!!! We drove through Warkworth (where we covered when I was in the North Shore) and what a great trip down memory lane. I love the beautiful rolling hills and SHEEP AND COWS. So great!!! The ward here is so wonderful and I love everyone!!!

The drive up!

A cute picnic overlooking Whangarei

Crack up story for the week, it's a 'had to be there' moment but I will try to explain. So on the drive up we talked about the food we hated and I said how I hated peaches. First house we go to and dessert.... peaches and cream. She cracked up. I swallowed it all and when we were finished she goes up to the Sister and said, "My companion LOVES peaches, can she finish the rest!?" and then the Sister says "oh yes, yes, eat them please" and I was like "non ono it's ok!!!!" and she put the can in front of me and says "no, you finish them all or they will go to waste".  Awkward. S o I sat there and ate the darn peaches whilst she was wetting herself laughing. Known this kid for 4 hours and she throws me under the bus! SO crack up :)

Moral of the story is I am a happy little larrakin. The work here is also great... I have been just mostly meeting our investigators and members and everything :) So chilled here. It's like a whole different mission!!!!

Sister Heal

26/1/15
Transfer 8 Week 1

I am still so in love with and obsessed with Whangarei. It is a place where all dreams come true and miracles and spiritual experiences happen on the hourly. At least that's been my experience these wonderful 10 days and I hope it continues on. Surprisingly the more I'm here the more I love it.

Some highlights for the week... 

Sister Heal & Sister Dixon

MY BIRTHDAY!  So woke up to banana pancakes (which I expected because my companion didn't know how to make them so I made the mix the night before lol) and also a beautiful home made card from the lovely SIster Dixon. My trainer Sister Bonilla also gave me a package for my birthday which was 
I N C R E D I B L E and I loved it so much it brought tears to my eyes!! A giant photo frame full of pictures of us, and my favourite people, and a list of all our memories. It was excellent!!! Then the day we spent teaching and testifying and visiting our favourite members. Birthdays as a missionary

The Elders got me good!!

is the best!!! For dinner, one of the recent converts, Sue, threw a surprise birthday party for me and sang Happy Birthday in Maori. Plus she gave me ice cream cake, anyone who knows me knows I hate all cakes except ice cream cake. She didn't even know, but said the spirit told her. Genius, Heavenly Father cares about me so much he even cares what cake I have on my birthday ;) haha, anyway we were in the middle of nowhere almost lost when the ZL call and tell us they have something for us. Get out the car and I get attacked with silly string from 4 elders, crack up. Plus they had a cake and card. Missionaries really are a bunch of 20yr olds running loose. SUCH A GOOD BIRTHDAY! My companion was also my slave, best thing ever!

So at other points during the week.. Had dinner at this house with no electricity or running water (real NZ style) which was legendary and a different experience.

We went to contact a former investigator but turns out she was at work. The mum was pretty defensive so we left quickly and as we were getting into the car I was told so strongly by the Spirit to turn around and the next thing you know - she is coming down the street!!! I shouted out (as you do often as a missionary to randoms) and we had a fantastic conversation and she then asked us if she could come to church! So elect. She came, loved it and is now besties with all the YSA. She is so beautiful and so honest and so sincere!! So we are working closely with her! Sometimes it hard as a missionary to not want to be everyone's friend but we are here with a purpose :)

Chopping wood like a 'boss'

INTERVIEWS... we had interviews with our Mission President and somehow we got on to talking about apostles and I said how I had never seen one and he was like "well that might change soon".  Then I heard at church that David A Bednar is coming to NZ. Is this real life? I would trade my right foot to meet him!

We also did some service this week and I chopped some wood like a boss!

Sister Heal