Baptism, View from a Mt Top, and My Zone

Another week - a baptism and front wheel drive cars

March 21, 2016

Chers tous,

J’espère vous avez passe une bonne semaine.

This week has been good, full of lecons, and eating too much white rice.

There isn't much to update y'all on except how much I love the membres in our ward and our amis.

So Dawson got baptized this past Saturday! It was so great malgré le chaleur, but he was so happy and even expressed how thankful he was for the change he decided to make in his life thanks to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Dawson has been coming to soirée familials with famille TEIHO for a long time now, and last monday his TWIN brother Orson came, and left with a lot of questions. The next day was Dawson's entretien de bapteme and at the end Orson came in to talk to Sr. TEHIO and Sr. TEHIO pulls us off to the side afterwards and tells us that Orson wants to talk to us! We later see him as we are getting ready to leave and Orson, so shy and inside himself, asks if he can follow the missionary lecons and learn more, and find out why Dawson is so happy all the time now hahaha #blessed

We've had some great discussions with amis and really help them increase their testimony of le Rétablissement. I'm so greatful for this gospel and the joy it brings me in my life même si la vie est pas toujours belle. 

I'm so excited for le Pâques and feeling even closer to my Heavenly Father! Christ did it all for us, and He asks so little in return.

During personal study I happened upon these scriptures. Short and simple but super powerful:

Alma 15:14  And it came to pass that they were many; for they did flock in from all the region round about Sidom, and were baptized.

                        * they flocked in from all over. that just goes to show how strong the converting power of the gospel is. even if our amis aren't taught a single lecon by us, we helped the Saint Esprit touch their hearts and convert them unto the gospel.

Alma 17:10  And it came to pass that the Lord did visit them with his Spirit, and said unto them: Be comforted. And they were comforted.

I hope y'all have a FANTASTIC week!

Je vous aime!

Ua here au ia outou!

-Tuahine/Soeur Morrill :)

Pictures of Crossing Rivers & Saving Souls

Another Week: Crossing Rivers and Saving Souls

March 14, 2016

Hello to you all!!

This week has been great! I've felt such a relief to finally start working back in my prope secteur again!

I've been training Soeur Lasso for about 11 weeks now, WHAT, so this week is her last week of training! Time is so weird here on the mission. I really can't explain it, but it's crazy how fast time flies.

This week has been SUPER HOT! I got a few more good sunburns. I've kinda become immune to sunscreen...doesn't really help me anymore, but good news: those burns are actually turning into tans haha.

We had some really good lecons, received some famille references from membres, and recontacted ancien amis!

One of our lecons was with Arii. He's a reference from Famille TEIHO and is only 15 years old. Our lecon was about le temple, geneologie, et la famille; because why not? At the sortie du temple he asked "comment je peux entrer de dans?" The lecon was so good, and he expressed concern about his famille and how some of them seem to not be taking the right path. We explained that by him showing the good example towards his famille, little by little they will have the desire to change.

BUT the cool part: around the end of the lecon I had a distinct impression to engage him to baptism...for le 6 Avril, because another "why not?" It's Christ's birthday. I engaged him, and saw Soeur Lasso agreeing with me out of the corner of my eye. Arii asks "Pourquoi tu as choisit ce date pour moi?"...I said "J'ai eu l'impression de t'engager pour ce date la, mais c'est le vraie anniversaire de Jesus Christ aussi." On a pense ce date sera speciale pour n'importe quelle personne. MAIS Arii replies "ca c'est interessant parce que je sui ne le 6 Avril...ca c'est mon anniversaire aussi...." WHAAATTT!!! NO WAYYY!! GET OUT RIGHT NOW!! We literally had no idea his birthday was the 6 Avril. After that event I knew that impression was a direct revelation from Heavenly Father.

Arii didn't accpet the date just yet, but we later found out from Soeur TEIHO that he wants to get baptized, but his famille situation is really difficult. I can't get over how ready and prepared he is.

Not much else to really say in this email other than how greatful I have for this gospel. I'm thankful for my Heavenly Father and the chance I have to share this gospel with the people of Tahiti. I can't comprehend time on the mission, because really....it doesn't exist. You get lost in the work. And when you are exhausted but happy...you know you worked hard that day...even if your plans didn't exactly work out!

Thank you all for the prayers and emails.

Don't hesitate to send letters or little care packages (sorry if the price of shipping makes you cry)

Soeur McKenzie Morrill
L'Eglise de Jesus-Christ des
Saints des Derniers Jours
B.P. 93, Mission Mormone
Cours de L'Union Sacree
Papeete 98714
French Polynesia

Doctrine and Covenants 100:1  "Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you, my friends Sidney and Joseph, your families are well; they are in mine hands, and I will do with them as seemeth me good; for in me there is all power."

"Scriptures are like packets of light that illuminate our minds." - Elder Richard G. Scott

Ua here au ia outou!

Je vous aime!

-Tuahine/Soeur Morrill :)

MIssionary Farewells

Tahitian Missionary Farewell

March 7, 2016

EHHH Ia ora na tatou,

C'est moi, just checkin' in again!

So I will be honest! This week was weird, hard, and trying!

First of all: It didn't really stop raining until last night, but we had patches of sun here and there throughout the week, so our showers we reasonably warm haha.

Soeur Lawrence and I had to go en ville twice this week for her back, so we ended up having little ballads with Couple Hauata (one of the missionaire couples who work in the mission bureau). After one of the ballads with couple Hauata they took us to MACDO. Sitting back and looking back at that day I never thought that I would be HERE, in Tahiti. As we were sitting in MaCDO Elder Hauata told us "vous n'auriez jamais pense que un jour vous seriez ici a MaCDO, a Tahiti, en train de manger et parler avec les Tahitiens en Français." It's true. Some nights I will be sitting in my room or laying in bed and I will have that "Woah...I'm actually on a mission" realization....still at 9 months out.

Funny little story: Soeur Lawrence had to get a scanner of her back and as we were waiting for the images to come back I had a chance to get a little dodo (nap) in. Not gonna lie....I had a little dream, and in that dream (my point of view) I was looking down at a wooden table and I was holding a nife and fork in my hands. Then, all of a sudden I see hands place a BIG metal bowl of POISSON CRU in front of me. And then I woke up. Literally...that was my dream! Kind of went to show how hungry I was that day haha.

In speaking of this week being hard: We worked both secteurs, Taravao 1 et Taravao 2. Soeur Lawrence's back did not let her work so we did splits and she stayed at a membres house while me, Soeur Lasso, and Soeur Sanchez worked. It was hard and tiring. We lost Vairea's bapteme for the 12 of March, because she wants to heal the relationship with her famille first. She has such a strong desire to get baptized, and even though the trials in her life are super overwhelming, she toujours turns to prayer and the Livre de Mormon to give her comfort when we aren't there.

SO this week Soeur Lasso and I got poisoned... :)

No idea what kind.

The docteur only told me..."tu a ete empoissonee." Il a rien dit quelque chose d'autre.

Was it with food? Something we touched? Something we breathed in? No idea....but for 2 days me and her were sick! It was rough. But once I went to the medecin he gave me "charbon active" (activated charcoal) to absorb the poison in my system and in his broken english "suffocate it" haha. It worked though, and here I am again :)...still getting sunburnt and inviting people to come unto Christ!

Je me rappele quand j'ai quitte ma famille en Amerique pour venir ici en mission. C'etait dur et je voulait pas les laisse derrière moi. Mais chaque fois je pense ou inquiete de ma famille mon Pere Celeste me dit "T'inquiete pas. Je t'ai promis que je vais les proteger." Mais j'ai trouve une famille ici a Polynesie Francaise, une grande famille. That little thought came to my mind as I listened to Elder (Jean-Phillipe) McGrevy bear his testimony one last time in church this past sunday, before he leaves for his mission to Pocatello, Idaho. JP has been a big inspiration to the membres of Taravao 1 as well as me and Soeur Lasso. He changed his life around and at the age of 25 left on his mission. He has become one of my great friends here during my sejours in Taravao.

This week has been really scattered with events that don't exactly coincide, but it was still a week for the books, malgré les difficulties et les maladies on a eu.

I love y'all so much and appreciate all of the prayers and love!

You are in my prayers!

Ua here au ia outou!

quote of the day: "Our physical bodies grow bigger when we feed them nourishing food. Our spirits grow brighter when we feed them light.....fulness of light means a fulness of joy." - Elder Larry R. Lawrence of the seventy

"God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." - 1 John 1:5

- Soeur/Tuahine Morrill :)