June 7, 2011

Kia Ora!

Sorry I didn't email yesterday, it was the queens birthday weekend. But a lot has happened since last week. Its been rainy, windy, sunny, cold and warm. Luckily the past few nights have been pretty warm, makes it nicer biking around. Transfers came, Elder Ales left to go north to Kaikohe, and I'm here now with Elder Hussain. He's Fijian/Indian born in Fiji but raised in Sydney. He's pretty full on.

I'm not sure if I told you about an investigator we have named Jack, but it was his brother-in-law that just left for the MTC. But anyways, he brought us over some thin sheets of wood to use for kindling for our fire, and while he was dropping it off he saw that our wood in the garage was kinda wet, and so he brought over some dry wood for us last night. Today we had another really good lesson. We forgot to set him for baptism, but he's as ready as anybody I've taught this whole time on my mission. But we have another lesson on Thursday so we'll probably do it then.

So Tuesday night Elder Ales had to drive to Rotorua so that they wouldn't have to get up super early to get to Auckland by 8 am. So I spent the night and most of Thursday with Elder Johnson. I'm just glad he's not my companion. He's a good missionary, but he just has to top everything you say and do with something he's done. But my new companion came down from Dargaville by Whangerei (fawn-ger-'a'). And when we left man, did he get right to work. No time for dinner, just eat a piece of bread and lets go. The best way I can describe him is a gospel salesman. Pretty full on. But we had a miracle find. Apparently Elder Hussain was committed to find a family and set them for baptism that night by the A.P.'s So we went out with that attitude and started to work. We talked to everybody on the street, we knocked probably 20 houses, but not a single person was interested, so we thought we'd go to a member to see if they knew anybody we could talk to or teach. On the way I remembered a member referral for a family that we've been trying to contact for a while now. I felt like we should try them since we weren't too far away. They ended up letting us in and we taught them the restoration and they were pretty accepting. They accepted the baptismal commitment but because they missed church, we're trying to find another date for them. But it was a father named Strickland, his partner Bex (Rebecca), and their daughter Annaias.

So miracles do happen when you "pray your guts out" or in other words, pray with faith. So I've been working full on, not that I haven't before, but even more so now. This area is really blooming, we just need the members to keep up.

I'm excited to see what else is going to happen this transfer. Going on a mission has been more than I expeted it to be already, and I'm not even close to halfway. This is the truth, I know the gospel has been restored. We have all the pieces to the puzzel, and they all fit.

Thanks for everything you all are doing for me. Love you heaps!

Arohanui!
Sincerely,
Elder Sorensen