November 30, 2015
Ia ora na tatou!!
So before I forget! I hope
everyone had a fantabulous Thanksgiving and are enjoying the fall weather and
the occasional SNOW! Oh how much I miss the snow!
Funny language slip up: So we had the bapteme for Heituarii
this past Saturday! It was so great! The water was brown (because it was
pouring down rain and they don't have clean water so everyone needs to filter
their own water)! He cried when he bore his testimony! BUT the night before his
bapteme Soeur Shariatmadari and I were sharing one last message until his big
day and I was telling a little bit about Lehi's vision in the Livre de Mormon
(1 Nephi 8); I was meaning to tell him that we need to hold onto the barre de
fer (iron rod, which represents the word of God) with two hands instead of one,
but apparently I said barre de feu (rod of fire).....oops hahaha.
We had a split with the STLs
(sister training leaders) de Papara. I went to Papara for a day and Soeur
Arbuckle came to Taravao 1 to spend a day with my companion. I was with Soeur
Wilson. I was pretty overwhelmed...not gonna lie. I had just gotten to a new
sector and was working on learning who our amis and membres are and figuring
out where everyone lives (because in Polynesia they don't have actual street
address just landmarks and some have only house numbers), so I tried my best to
help Soeur Wilson in her sector. But all in all it was a good day!
We met a new ami in our sector.
His name is Jean-Paul and he can't hear very well so when we taught him le
Retablissement we practically had to yell, and when we told him Joseph Smith's
first vision we were literally yelling so that he could understand us; which in
all reality is probably not the best thing to do if we want the spirit to be
there during the lecon but Jean-Paul was an acception. He's so nice, and he is
an ancian ami de Paea (another zone in the mission). He was following the
lecons with the elders and they almost set a date de bapteme for him MAIS one
day in church one of his friends in Paea stood up in front of everyone and
embarassed him and told him to go back to his home town to follow the lecons.
Eh Eh...I felt so bad for Jean-Paul, but he was so happy to get the lecons
again. We engaged him to be baptized on the 26 Decembre and told him to pray
about it. He told us he wants to get baptized BUT......(just wait)....he wants
to get his driving permit first; apparently some times when he goes out driving
the gendarme pull him over and he gives them the insurance for his car, and
when they ask to see his permit he says he forgot it at home and gives the name
of his cousin who does have a permit so the genderme can verify it on their
computer. He said "I don't want to have to keep lying after I get
baptized. I want to get my permit before I get baptized so I can work at
keeping a clean slate." So along with the lecons we are gonna try and help
him study for the driving permit test.
Now: On to Frere Jean: Frere
Jean is from the West Indies, but grew up in France. His accent is so different
from those here in Polynesia, so I'm still trying to get used to how he talks
and what he says. He has a lot of hard questions and asks a lot about
chronology! We read 3 Nephi 11 with him which is when Christ appeared to the
people in Ancien Amerique. We read it once and then a second time so that he
could focus on the spirit! It was so crazy, but the second time he starts
talking (after we engaged him to be baptized the 26 Decembre) about how he
prayed today would be different and he would feel something different! And then
all of a sudden he just breaks down crying. Sobbing. Blubbering like a baby.
And crying out to Heavenly Father to help him see the truth and feel his love
and to heal his hardened heart! NO LIE...most interesting lecon ever, but all
we did was follow the Spirit. And the testimonies we bore and the way we taught
that lecon was apperently what he needed. After he runs into his room, closes
the door and continues to cry out to God and crying. We close with a prayer
with his wife who was just sitting their, and leave.
Sorry if this email sounds
super jumbled, but I didn't have much time today. We are going en ville (into
Papeete) so we had to do our mail early today!
I hope y'all have a great week!
Ua here au ia outou!
-Soeur/Tuahine Morrill :)
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